◆ Pacific League: Seibu Lions vs. Nippon-Ham (25th, Belluna Dome)

On the 25th, ahead of the game against Nippon-Ham (Belluna Dome), the Seibu Lions registered three players to the active roster: outfielder Masayuki Kuwahara (33), outfielder An-Ko Lin (29), and outfielder Seiya Watanabe (23). On the previous day, the 24th, when there was no game, the team had removed three players from the active roster: pitcher Haruto Yamada (22), infielder Takayoshi Yamamura (23), and infielder Taiyo Sato (24).

Three reliable core fielders have returned for the final stage of the season. With 27 games remaining this season, they trail the league-leading Softbank Hawks—whose magic number is down to 24—by 5.5 games, but they are now ready to mount a pursuit. Starting today is a two-game series against third-place Nippon-Ham, who are three games away. With outfielder Takumi Kuriyama's (42) retirement game scheduled for the match against the Rakuten Eagles at Belluna Dome on the 30th, the team aims to ride an upward momentum all at once.

Kuwahara, in his first year with Seibu Lions, suffered a torn left oblique muscle in the game against Nippon-Ham on July 11th (at Escon Stadium). He has been undergoing rehabilitation. This season, he was also sidelined in April due to a torn left calf muscle, and with two absences from the lineup, he has played in 54 games, recording 3 Home Run, 15 RBI, and a batting average of .236. Now in his 15th professional season, the experienced and gutsy player who gives the team momentum has finally returned.

An-Ko Lin, a member of the Taiwan national team for the World Baseball Classic (WBC), was removed from the roster on the 9th due to left knee pain. In this season, his first year in Japan, he appeared in 59 games, recording 6 Home Runs, 22 RBI, and a .228 batting average. Watanabe was substituted mid-game during defense in the Softbank Hawks game on the 9th (at Belluna Dome) after being hit below the left eye by an irregular bounce and being unable to stand up; he was diagnosed with a "left orbital floor fracture" and sidelined, but returned to a third-team game on the 20th. In this season, his second year as a professional, he has recorded 7 Home Runs, 38 RBI, and a .257 batting average in 102 games.