From 6 p.m. on April 17th, the first leg of Hokkaido Nippon-Ham vs Saitama Seibu Lions will be held on ES CON FIELD.

[Last season's head-to-head record] Hokkaido Nippon-Ham vs Saitama Seibu Lions 15 wins, 9 losses, 1 draw

【Advance Starter】
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham: Koki Kitayama pitcher 2 matches 1 win, 1 loss, ERA 2.63
Saitama Seibu Lions: Yutaro Watanabe pitcher 3 matches 0 wins 2 losses, ERA 4.58

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham started Koki Kitayama pitcher. In his last appearance (9th, Tohoku Rakuten Eagles game), he achieved HQS with a good pitch of 3 hit 1 Walk 10 strike out runs in the 8th inning and won his first win of the season. Last season, he had a good record with 2 wins in 3 matches against Saitama Seibu Lions and a ERA of 0.44. With a pitch that shows good compatibility, I want to win my second consecutive victory.

On the other hand, Saitama Seibu Lions started with Yutaro Watanabe pitcher. In his last appearance (10th, Chiba Lotte Marines game), he achieved his second QS of the season with a 6 hit 2 Walk 2 runs in the middle of the 7th inning. In all three games he has pitched so far, he has pitch more than 100 pitches, and he continues to throw hard. In this game, he throws a long inning and aims for his first win.

Text: Yokazu Sonoda