◇Chiba Lotte Marines vs. Tohoku Rakuten Eagles, 22nd Round (17th, Zozo Marine Stadium)

Tohoku Rakuten Eagles' Rui Muneyama hit his 7th solo home run.

In the top of the 6th inning with a 2-point lead and 2 outs with no runners, he stepped up for his third at-bat. On the first pitch thrown by pitcher Fumiya Ono, he struck back a low fastball, and the ball flew straight into the right-field stands. His third hit of the game became a pursuit home run.

Muneyama has now recorded hits in four consecutive games. In September, he is batting .317 (as of before the game), continuing his strong performance following August, when he recorded a monthly batting average of .322.

◇Comment from Muneyama
"I hit a fastball. I went into the batter's box thinking about making a good swing. I'm glad it resulted in a home run." (with a smile)

Text by Tenmichi Shinae