On August 7th at 18:00, the 17th round match between Hokkaido Nippon-Ham and Tohoku Rakuten Eagles will be held on ES CON FIELD.

[Head-to-head Record] Hokkaido Nippon-Ham (3rd place) vs. Tohoku Rakuten Eagles (6th place) 10 wins, 6 losses

[Announced Starting Lineup]
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham: Kota Tatsu pitcher 20 games, 3 wins, 6 losses, ERA 3.21
Tohoku Rakuten Eagles: Ureña pitcher 10 matches, 2 wins, 4 losses, ERA 4.81

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham started Kota Tatsu pitcher. After about two months of reliever adjustments, he returned to the starting lineup in his previous appearance (July 31, against Chiba Lotte Marines), pitching 104 pitches over 6 innings, 3 hit, 9 strike out, and no runs, earning the win. His first game as starter against Tohoku Rakuten Eagles was on April 21. In that game, he fulfilled his role with 2 hit 1 runs over 7 innings, so he will want to deliver a strong performance in this outing as well.

On the other hand, Tohoku Rakuten Eagles saw Ureña pitcher make his first first-team appearance in about three weeks. He faced Hokkaido Nippon-Ham on April 9, and despite no wins, he started the game with 2 hit no walks Hit by Pitch no runs in 5 innings. As for the batting lineup, we have high hopes for Naoki Sato. In his first year after the transfer, he has played in 50 games so far. Although he was removed on July 2 due to poor condition, after being recalled on July 31, he has led the lineup, hitting hit in 3 of 4 games.