◇ Tohoku Rakuten Eagles vs Fukuoka Softbank Hawks, Game 24 (1st, Rakuten Mobile Park Miyagi)

Fukuoka Softbank's Kensuke Kondo and Ryoya Kurihara hit back-to-back home runs. Kondo has homered in three consecutive games, and Kurihara reached the 40 Home Run mark.

In the first inning, with Tomoya Masaki on first base, Kondo stepped up to the plate. On a 2-2 count, he drove the sixth pitch into the right-field stands for a go-ahead 31st 2-run home run. Following him, Kurihara adjusted well to a low breaking ball and also sent it into the right-field stands. The back-to-back home runs gave the team a promising 3-point lead.

Kondo, homering in three straight games, now has a .310 batting average, 31 home runs, and 107 RBI. Kurihara, hitting his first home run in four games, became the first player in both leagues to reach 40 Home Runs. This is the first time for the club since Nobuhiko Matsunaka and Julio Zuleta in 2005.

◇ Kensuke Kondo Comment
"I hit a slider. I just focused on making my own swing. I'm glad I caught it perfectly for a home run and gave us the lead. I'll keep doing my best to contribute to more scoring."

◇ Ryoya Kurihara Comment
"I hit a slider. I was able to make a solid swing. I'm happy to have reached the milestone of 40 home runs, which was one of my goals. I'll keep working hard to help us win."