◆ Pacific League Softbank Hawks 6-1 Rakuten Eagles (16th, Mizuho PayPay Stadium)

Softbank Hawks secured win in four games, preventing a three-game losing streak against the same opponent.

Starting pitcher Haru Matsumoto kept scoring zeros, centered on fastballs and slider. He allowed only two hit in the fifth inning. He threw the pitch without runs. The lineup took the lead in the fifth inning with two outs and runners on first and second, and Kondo hit a timely single to right field. In the sixth, Masaki hit his 19th two-run homer to score four runs, and in the eighth, Shoji added another run.

From the sixth inning, second pitcher Tsumori took the mound after Haru Matsumoto, and the team held on for the win with a relay of Osuna, Matsumoto Yu, and Sugiyama. Haru Matsumoto earned his eighth win.

The magic number for winning the championship has decreased to 28, and if Seibu Lions loses Seibu Lions game against Lotte which starts at 5 p.m., it will drop to 27.