◆ Pacific League: Nippon-Ham vs. Softbank Hawks (12th, Escon Stadium)

It has been revealed that Softbank Hawks 's closer, pitcher Kazuki Sugiyama, has fractured his left hand.

In the 9th inning of the game against Nippon-Ham (at Escon Stadium) the previous day (11th), with a four-run lead, he walked a batter and allowed an infield hit with two Walk, putting himself in a jam before giving up a timely single to right field to Yuki Kiyomiya. He then closer Reyes to end the game, but was so angered by his own poor pitch that he punched the dugout. Although it wasn't his dominant hand, he suffered a fractured left hand. He was removed from the active roster that day.

He had appeared in seven games so far this season, with ERA of 9.00, and his performance had not been good. Manager Kokubo expressed his regret, saying, "It was something that could have been predicted given his personality. I had warned him about it beforehand, but... I suppose it's also my responsibility that I couldn't prevent it." He added, "As he grows into one of the league's top closers, building trust requires steady work, but it can be destroyed in an instant. It will be important for him to realize the gravity of that and how he uses it to his advantage in his future baseball career." For the time being, the ninth inning will be handled by Matsumoto Yu, Hikaru Kimura, and others, but the loss of the closer who won the saves title with 31 last season is a blow to the team that is currently leading the league.