From 18:00 on September 10th, the 25th round match between Fukuoka Softbank and Hokkaido Nippon-Ham will be held at MIZUHO PayPay Dome.

【Head-to-head record】Fukuoka Softbank (1st) vs Hokkaido Nippon-Ham (3rd) 17 wins, 5 losses, 2 draws

【Probable Starters】
Fukuoka Softbank: Haru Matsumoto pitcher 18 games, 9 wins, 3 losses, ERA 3.02
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham: Takayuki Kato pitcher 18 games, 11 wins, 2 losses, ERA 2.74

The starter for Fukuoka Softbank is pitcher Haru Matsumoto. In his previous appearance (August 30th vs Orix Buffaloes), he earned his 9th win of the season with 6 innings, 93 pitches, 7 hit, 1 Hit by Pitch, 6 strike out, 2 runs. Although he has struggled against Hokkaido Nippon-Ham this season with an ERA of 5.27 over 3 games, he hopes to pitch well to achieve his first-ever double-digit win, and lead the team to a 3-game winning streak.

Opposing them, Hokkaido Nippon-Ham will start pitcher Takayuki Kato. He was scheduled to start against Saitama Seibu Lions on August 26th but withdrew due to poor physical condition. On the 2nd, he pitched in a farm team game against the Hanshin Tigers, performing well with 5 scoreless innings. While Kato has 11 win, tied for the league lead, the race for the most win is a major scramble among 7 pitchers. In his first top-team appearance since August 15th, he aims to secure his 12th win to take the sole lead and stop the team's losing streak.

Text by Aoi Nemoto