◆ Pacific League Softbank vs Seibu (4th, Mizuho PayPay)

The Seibu Lions scored their first run of the season against Softbank Hawks starting pitcher Yugo Maeda in the 23rd inning.

In the third inning, trailing by three runs, they created a scoring opportunity with runners on first and second and no outs. After Hasegawa and Nevin were retired, leaving runners on first and third with two outs, 43-year-old infielder Takeya Nakamura, a senior to 21-year-old Yuu Maeda from Osaka Toin, hit a timely doble down the left-field line to pull back one run.

Before the game, they had faced Yuu Maeda three times this season and had 0 wins and 3 losses. They had been unable to score a single run over a total of 20 innings.

The Seibu Lions are in second place, trailing the leading Softbank Hawks by five games. Will they be able to close the gap all at once in this three-game head-to-head series?