◇ Orix Buffaloes vs. Chiba Lotte Marines, Game 16 (25th, Kyocera Dome Osaka)

Orix Buffaloes took an early 3-0 lead in the first inning. Ryo Ota The player hit his sixth home run of the season, a two-run shot, his first since the game against Saitama Seibu Lions on the 5th.

Orix Buffaloes 's offense in the bottom of the first inning... Yuma Mune A player's Walk and Ryoma Yamanaka hit by the player put runners on first and third with no outs, creating a scoring opportunity. Ryoma Nishikawa The player showed resilience, fouling off seven consecutive pitches from a 3-1 count. Koshiro Hiroike On the 12th pitch thrown by pitcher, he scooped up a low inside fastball, sending it flying sacrifice fly fly with plenty of distance.

With one out and a runner on first, Ota stepped up to the plate. After Nishikawa's persistent at-bat, Ota connected with breaking ball that came in sweetly on the first pitch. The moment he hit it, he knew it was a sure hit, and it flew into the left-center field stands. This was Ota's third consecutive loss. Jerry pitcher has gotten off to a good start, scoring three runs to give his team an early lead.

Ota had a great game in the previous match, driving in two RBI, including a walk-off hit. He's been leading the team with RBI in two consecutive games. Nishikawa also recorded an RBI for the first time since RBI against Chiba Lotte Marines on the 12th. His batting average for July is .240 (as of the start of the game) in 19 games, and his signature bat control has been subdued, but he'll be hoping to pick up the pace with this go-ahead hit.

◇Ota's comment
"The pitch I hit was slider. I was able to make a solid swing right from the first pitch."

Written by Ao Yokoyama