Seibu Lions Lions pitcher Kaima Taira (26) will be making his first appearance since his injury. He is scheduled to start in the exhibition game against Yakult on the 7th (Haruno). Manager Nishiguchi expressed his expectations, saying, "First of all, we'll check whether he can pitch properly. We'll see how he pitches, how far he can throw, and his movements as well."

The right-handed pitcher had been selected as a member of Samurai Japan's squad for the WBC, which began on the 5th, but announced his withdrawal on February 11th due to a "left calf strain." Since then, he has refrained from running and has continued to train through bullpen pitch and live batting practice (batting practice in a real game setting).

Seibu Lions 's opening pitcher has yet to be decided, and manager Nishiguchi emphasized after the game against Nippon-Ham on the 5th that "we are still assessing the situation." As the manager has indicated his preference for using pitcher who have no experience as opening pitcher, pitcher Yutaro Watanabe (25) and Natsuki Takeuchi pitcher 24), who both started in the same games on the 4th and 5th and pitched well, are likely candidates, but depending on Taira's condition, the competition is likely to become even more competitive.