The 12th game of the series between Orix Buffaloes and the Saitama Seibu Lions will be held at Kyocera Dome Osaka on June 21st at 1:00 PM.

[Head-to-head record] Orix Buffaloes (3rd place) vs. Saitama Seibu Lions (1st place): 7 wins, 4 losses

[Announced Starting Pitcher]
Orix Buffaloes: pitcher Alen Kuri, 12 games, 5 wins, 4 losses, ERA 2.76
Saitama Seibu Lions: Yutaro Watanabe pitcher 10 games, 3 wins, 3 losses, 2.94 ERA

Orix Buffaloes will start pitcher Alen Kuri. In his previous start (on the 14th against Hanshin Tigers) after a four-day rest, he pitched five innings, giving up two runs and receiving a no-decision. In June, he has appeared in three games with an ERA of 3.24, and has been far from win. He will take mound hoping to secure win in about three weeks, since the game against Yokohama DeNA on May 26th.

The starting pitcher for the Saitama Seibu Lions is Yutaro Watanabe. He has achieved three consecutive Quality Starts (HQS) since the game against the Tokyo Yakult on May 27th. It will be interesting to see if he can extend this streak in this first matchup of the season against Orix Buffaloes.

Written by Yui Kayama