The first game between Tohoku Rakuten Eagles and Chiba Lotte Marines will be held at Rakuten Eagles Mobile Saikyo Park Miyagi on April 17th at 6 PM.

[Last season's head-to-head record] Tohoku Rakuten Eagles vs. Chiba Lotte Marines: 16 wins, 9 losses

[Announced Starting Pitcher]
Tohoku Rakuten Eagles: pitcher Masaru Fujii, 22 games, 6 wins, 7 losses, 3.20 ERA (last season's record)
Chiba Lotte Marines: Atsuki Taneichi pitcher 24 games, 9 wins, 8 losses, 2.63 ERA (last season's record)

Tohoku Rakuten Eagles 's starting pitcher will be Masaru Fujii. He started the season in the farm team, appearing in 5 games and recording 2 wins and 1 loss with ERA of 1.96. He will be looking to secure a win in his first appearance in the first team this season. In the batting lineup, Ryosuke Tatsumi has been hitting well so far at Rakuten Eagles Mobile's Saikyo Park Miyagi, with 14 At Bat in 30 hit for a batting average of .467. He also has a good batting average with runners in scoring position at .357. Can he show his clutch hitting ability at home?

Chiba Lotte Marines will see pitcher Atsuki Taneichi take mound for the first time since the WBC. He has pitched in two games in the farm league, allowing only two hit strike out 13 batters over a total of eight innings without runs, showing continued strong performance. Last season, he was named the monthly MVP for September and October, and his form gradually improved towards the end of the season. This season, he will be looking to make a spectacular pitch and give his team momentum.

Written by Yokazu Sonoda