It was learned on the 13th that Seibu Lions outfielder Masayuki Kuwahara, who has been undergoing rehabilitation in the minor leagues due to a torn left oblique muscle, is expected to return to the first team as early as the game against Orix Buffaloes on the 18th (at Tokyo Dome).

He sustained the injury while throw in center defense during a game against Nippon-Ham on July 11th (at Escon Stadium). Initially, it was announced that he would be out for about 4 to 6 weeks, but he showed superhuman recovery speed, saying that he was "recovering almost too smoothly," and made his return to action in a farm team game against Hanshin Tigers on the 5th (at Belluna Dome), going 0-hit RBI At Bat then, he has continued to adjust while playing in minor league games.

During his visit to the third team's summer camp in Bibai City, Hokkaido on the 10th, manager Nishiguchi revealed the criteria for rejoining the first team, saying, "He'll be in the farm team for the rest of this week. He needs to play in more games, and if there are no issues after that, then maybe he'll be able to rejoin the first team. He also needs to get results in batting."