◆Nippon Life Interleague Series 2026: Orix Buffaloes vs. Hanshin Tigers (June 12, Kyocera Dome Osaka)

Orix Buffaloes ・ Ryoma Nishikawa outfielder started at “No. 2, left field” and hit his second solo home run of the season in his first at-bat.

In the first inning, with both teams scoreless, he swung at the first pitch, a fastball from Hanshin Tigers 's Murakami, and the ball hit the top of the right-field stands. It was his first home run in two months, since the game against Lotte on April 7th (Kyocera Dome Osaka), but he was modest, saying, "I'm not the type to aim for that kind of home run. It was an off-speed pitch, so it wasn't like Murakami at all. It was really just a fluke."

After a season-worst five-game losing streak—interrupted by a single draw—the team has now won four straight. “We won three straight against Yakult like that, so we were able to win today riding that momentum. Tomorrow’s game is also against pitcher, so I hope we can all pull together and get the win,” he said, envisioning a strategy to take down Takahashi, the dominant left-hander with a ERA ERA of 0.90.