◆ Pacific League Orix Buffaloes 2-3 Lotte (26th, Kyocera Dome Osaka)

Orix Buffaloes ・ Ryo Ota infielder (25) hit the home run he’d been hoping for. Trailing by three runs in the sixth inning with one out, he launched his seventh solo home run of the season over the center-field wall off Lotte’s Jackson. “I was able to execute my swing right from the first pitch. I made perfect contact.”After hitting a single to center field walk-off in the first game of the series on the 24th, he has now hit home runs in two consecutive games starting on the 25th. “I could see the ball well,” he said, radiating a sense of fulfillment.

In his eighth professional season this year, he has gone hit in a maximum of three consecutive games. To maintain his form as consistently as possible, he has incorporated a new "batting drill." He goes through different menus each day, including weight training and core exercises. He also attends Pilates classes about once a month, saying, "I don't know if they're connected, but there's meaning in doing them," and has been working to manage his physical condition.

Trailing by two runs in the eighth inning, Moritomo hit a timely single to right field with the bases loaded loaded and one out, narrowing the gap to one run. However, Kurebayashi and pinch-hitter Sugisawa were retired afterward, preventing the team from ending the nine-game stretch with a win. Manager Kishida, who used Ota as the cleanup hitter in a team-high 51 games during the first half of the season where the team finished with a .500 winning percentage, has designated him as a key player for a comeback, saying, "I hope he can maintain this form." The rapidly improving number 1 will be the starting point for the team's pursuit of the top spot. (Shunta Nanbu)