Pacific League: Seibu Lions 1-0 Rakuten Eagles (29th, Belluna Dome)

Pulling his hands close, Seibu Lions' Sumida let out a roar lasting about three seconds and exploded with emotion. With a 1-0 lead in the 9th inning, two outs and a runner on first, he struck out Tatsumi looking on a 1-2 count with a 125 km/h change-up. Allowing three hits over nine innings, he pitched with a good tempo to protect the single run from Canario's leadoff hitter home run in the first inning, achieving a 'Sumi-1 shutout game.' He finished the game in 2 hours and 8 minutes, the shortest in both leagues this season, to earn his ninth win.

His fourth complete game and third shutout game win of the season are both league-leading, but he smiled shyly with a touch of humility, saying, "Some parts were almost too good. I'm just glad the team won." The 1-0 win, achieved by holding onto the lead from a leadoff home run in the bottom of the first, was the fourth in franchise history and the first in 45 years. It came with the bonus of a rare record.

His fighting spirit was brimming. "Truly important games keep coming. I want to win every game." With a one-run lead in the third inning with two outs and a runner on first, Nakajima scored a look-and-run struck out and shouted immediately. By the end of the eighth inning, there were 93 pitches. Maddux (a shutout game under 100 pitches) was also visible, but he said, "I wasn't aiming for it. If I give up a hit, it's the game, so I just focused on gathering the ball low." In the seventh inning with no outs and a runner on first, he said, "Show your own habits," and stolen base Tatsumi at first base, pulling out the runner and Tatsumi to get out of the , maintaining a careful pitch and keeping the flow intact.

He leads the team by example. Drafted first overall in 2021, he is now in his fifth year as a professional. Fujii, a second-year left-hander who trained under him for the first time during his offseason last year and was promoted to the main roster before the season started, testifies that "he always gives his all in everything until the very end, never cutting corners. I learned a lot about how to think as pitcher from him. It has a lot to do with my current mindset." The left-hander's attitude is creating a positive cycle among pitcher and playing a part in building pitcher powerhouse.

With a pitch that Manager Nishiguchi also praised unreservedly, saying "It really all comes down to Sumida," the team's surplus reached 19, tying the season high. As the league-leading Softbank Hawks lost and the gap narrowed to five games, Sumida firmly declared, "From here, I want to chase The Hawks and do my best to aim for the championship." The Lions have not given up yet on their first championship since 2019. (Ayami Ohnaka)

Record Note: The Seibu Lions won 1-0 due to a leadoff hitter Home Run by Canario in the first inning. A 1-0 win resulting from a leadoff hitter Home Run in the bottom of the first inning is the 14th time in professional baseball since Chunichi's Okabayashi against The Giants on September 16, 2023. In the Pacific League, it is the 7th time since Nankai's Makoto Sasaki against Kintetsu on June 28, 1987 (7 times in the Central League, none in the single-league era). For the franchise...

Year/Month/Day Opponent = Lead-off hitter

September 18, 1988, Hankyu: Teruyuki Takakura

September 23, 1970, Nankai - Kazuo Kai

Aug 17, 1981, Kintetsu: Hiroyuki Yamazaki

August 29, 2014: Rakuten Eagles = Canario

The fourth time. Note that in the top of the first inning, it has occurred eight times (four in the Central League, four in the Pacific League, and none during the single-league era).