◆Nippon Life Interleague Series 2026: DeNA 3-1 Orix Buffaloes (May 28, Yokohama)

Orix Buffaloes missed their chance to start the interleague series with three consecutive wins for the first time in nine years, since their six-game winning streak at the start of the season in 2017. They took a one-run lead in the second inning due to a wild pitch by the opposing team, and starting pitcher Espinoza pitched six runs innings. However, things took a turn for the worse in the seventh inning when they were trying to hold on for the win.

On this day, Mukunoki, who is usually a key part of the winning pattern, was not included in the roster. Yoshida was brought in as the second pitcher. This was his first time pitching on consecutive days in 11 games since returning from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow in March of last year.

After allowing doble Ishigami, and then giving up a heartbreaking go-ahead three-run homer to pinch-hitter Kyoda with two outs and runners on first and second, Espinosa's win would have given the team four consecutive wins in interleague play, tying the longest winning streak by a foreign pitcher in the club's history (a record previously held by Figaro in 2011), but that remarkable achievement was put on hold in an instant.

Trailing by two runs in the eighth inning, they created a scoring opportunity with runners on first and second with one out, but their main hopes, Nakagawa and Moritomo, struck struck out consecutively. They were then shut down by DeNA's winning pattern, Reynolds and Yamazaki.