◆パ・リーグ　オリックス７―１西武（１６日・京セラドーム大阪）

Orix Buffaloes pitcher Yoshihisa Hirano was removed from the active roster on the 16th. He began his 21st professional season as pitcher coach and achieved his 1000th career strike out in a game Rakuten Eagles on March 29th (Kyocera Dome Osaka). He had appeared in two games so far, recording one hold and ERA 4.50.

Manager Mamoru Kishida, who was drafted in the same year as Hirano in 2005, explained, "reliever staff rotates around, and there are pitcher working hard in the minors." Hirano is scheduled to accompany the first team as pitcher coach for the time being, and he showed his continued commitment to contributing, saying, "I'll just do my job properly."