◆ Pacific League Softbank vs. Nippon-Ham (27th, Mizuho PayPay)

Nippon-Ham pitcher Hiromi Ito was removed from the game in the middle of the 6th inning after giving up 9 hit and 5 runs, while strike out 4.

In the first inning, home runs by Kiyomiya Yuki and Manami gave them a three-run lead, but in the second inning, with one out and a runner on first, Kurihara hit a two-run homer to left-center field, narrowing the lead to one run.

In the third inning, he gave up a game-tying solo home run to Kondo, who was his teammate in the WBC. In the fourth inning, immediately after taking the lead with an RBI single by Tamiya, he allowed another game-tying solo home run to Yamakawa, who was hit into the left field stands, giving up a total of three home runs.

Still, in the 4th inning when the pinch spread with his teammate's fielder’s choice, he missed Shuto with 2 outs and 1st and 2nd base, and struck out. Even in the 5th inning with 2 outs and 1st base, he finished Yamakawa with a straight swing of 149 km struck out, showing his character. However, in the 6th inning, with no runner outs, Umino and Dai Makihara allowed consecutive doble, and went down mound when the lead was taken away for the first time in this game.

This marks the third time in the team's history that a pitcher has given up three or more home runs in an opening game, following Kaneda Tomehiro's three home runs in 1971 and Nishizaki Yukihiro's four home runs in 1990. It was the most difficult pitching performance in 36 years.