◇ Tohoku Rakuten vs Hokkaido Nippon-Ham 3rd Round (10th, Rakuten Mobile Park Miyagi)

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters' Tatsuki Mizuno hit the team's first home run, a three-run shot.

With a three-run lead in the top of the third inning, Yua Tamiya and Taiki Narama hit singles to get on hit, and Narama was up to bat for the second time with two outs and runners on first and second. With count at 2-1, he perfectly caught a high change-up thrown by the opposing starting pitcher, Takayuki Kishi, and took his turn at bat into the right field stands watched by Hokkaido Nippon-Ham fans. His first Home Run of the season was a valuable extra point to support starting pitcher Koki Kitayama, whose birthday was today.

Before the game, Tatsuki Mizuno was not in good form with a batting average of .115, but he has been gradually improving, such as hitting a three-run triple that sweep in the previous game. With this hit as a turning point, I would like to play a key role in batting as well.

Text by Haruka Sonoda

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