On 6 March, the opening match between Chiba Lotte and Hiroshima was played in Zozo Marine Stadium, where Chiba Lotte win 4-0.

The starter, Yuji Nishino pitcher, suddenly struck out back-to-back struck out and retired three batters in the first inning, then threw 3 closer 5 pitches in the second inning, hit 3 strike out 1 Walk runs. He showed that he is making good progress in preparation for the start of the season.

The sophomore Haruya Tanaka pitcher allowed hit in the top of the third and fourth innings, but gave up the streak before defending the short stop in the top of the fifth Ryusei Ogawa Thanks to the good defense of the players, the three teams were retired. In the top of the seventh, his fifth inning, he gave up a Hit by Pitch but got out of the double play and went 2 hit 3 strike out runs on 55 pitches in the fifth.

With the score tied 0-0 in the bottom of the third inning, Tatsuhiro Tamura 's infield hit and back-to-back Walk bases loaded with no outs, and Soto's RBI single scored two runs in the second. Rookie Misho Nishikawa followed with a sacrifice fly for his third goal. In the bottom of the sixth, Aito hit his second solo shot of the opener into the left-field stands.

With a four-run lead in the top of the eighth, Shota Suzuki pitcher endured a two-out, two-out jam and third base, and Rikuto Yokoyama pitcher closed out the game in the top of the ninth with a triple.

Chiba Lotte won their first game of the season at home Zozo Marine Stadium. He threw a 4-pitcher relay to shutout game Hiroshima. Soto recorded his first hit and first RBI in the opener. Rookie Nishikawa, who is competing for a regular spot in the outfield, finished 2 hit 1 RBI, while Aito finished Home Run for the second consecutive game.

123456789 total
Hiro 000000000 0
RO 00300100X 4

Hiroki Tokoda - Tatsuya Matsumoto - Daisuke Moriura - Kei Kono - Kazuki Takita - Kenya Suzuki
Yuji Yuji Nishino-Haruya Tanaka-Shota Suzuki-Rikuto Yokoyama

Text by Ayako Kikuchi

・ Match details/video