Pacific League: Orix Buffaloes vs. Rakuten Eagles (27th, Kyocera Dome)

Rakuten Eagles pitcher Kenta Maeda started against the Orix Buffaloes and left the mound after allowing two runs on three hits over six innings.

He racked up outs with a good tempo from the start. Mixing sliders and splitters with fastballs in the high 140 km/h range, he baffled the hitters and put up a string of zeros on the scoreboard.

The lineup scored 10 runs by the third inning. The right-hander, who received strong run support, issued a Walk to Ota leading off the fifth inning, allowing a runner for the first time that day. Nevertheless, he calmly retired the following batters.

The veteran had a no-hit pitch until the fifth inning, but in the sixth inning with no outs and a runner on first, he gave up a hit to center field to Mugitani, allowing his first hit. After that, with one out and runners on second and third, he allowed runs during Nishikawa's ground ball to shortstop. Furthermore, with two outs and a runner on third, he gave up an RBI hit to right field to Kita. Even so, he held firm with two runs and left the mound in line for his fourth win.