◆ Pacific League Nippon-Ham 7-11 Softbank Hawks (12th, Escon Stadium)

Softbank Hawks secured a decisive victory, with both teams racking up a season-high 17 hit and 11 runs in their offense. Their five-game winning streak against Nippon-Ham marked their first time starting the season undefeated in 24 years, since 2002.

Starting pitcher Haru Matsumoto couldn't hold onto the three-run lead, and the score was reversed to 3-5, but in the fifth inning the offense got to Nippon-Ham 's starting pitcher Arihara. With no outs and runners on second and third, Shuto hit an RBI single to right field to narrow the gap to one run, and with no outs and runners on first and third, Umino executed a safety squeeze to tie the game. Then, with one out and a runner on third, Kawase hit sacrifice fly to take the lead.

This was the second time they faced Arihara, who transferred from Softbank Hawks to Nippon-Ham last offseason. In their previous encounter on March 29th (at Mizuho PayPay Dome), they scored 7 runs in 6 innings, successfully knocking him out for the second time in a row.

In the 7th inning, with a one-run lead, Shuto hit his first home run of the season, a two-run shot, to extend the lead. In the 8th inning, Kondo, Kurihara, Yanagida, and Yamakawa hit four consecutive singles to add three more runs.

After the game on the 11th, closer Kazuki Sugiyama became frustrated with his poor pitch and punched the dugout, fracturing his left hand and being removed from the active roster. The relief pitching staff consisted of eight players, but the third pitcher Taiga Kamichatani, who came in from the fourth inning, pitched three hit and runs innings. The right-hander, who joined the team from DeNA in the active player draft in December 2024, earned his first win since joining the team, and his first win in 736 days.