On the 23rd, Seibu Lions lose to Nippon-Ham 2-11 at Belluna Dome. On the 23rd, CS Fuji TV ONE's "Pro baseball News 2026" focused on pitch of starting pitcher Chihiro Sumida. Sumida struggled that day, throwing 88 pitches over 4 innings, giving up 9 hit, strike out 3, Hit by Pitch 3, and allowing 7 runs (4 earned). Commentator Akihiko Oya said, "pitch pattern was unbalanced. At first, he was getting swings and misses with fork, but from around the second inning, it seemed like he was trying to get struck out with fork, so he was slamming the ball down... As a result, the batters stopped swinging at fork, and he couldn't get struck out... He had no choice but to switch to change-up, and he was also using fastballs and curves to get ahead in count, so it became a fairly predictable pitching style. I think he was under a lot of pressure."

Commentator Shohei Tateyama said, "It wasn't like him. He threw a lot of pitches... However, one of the reasons Seibu Lions has been competing at the top of the standings is because he has consistently pitched seven or eight innings. Today, each of his pitches had power, but the height of his pitches wasn't good... I think he'll be able to correct that next time."

☆ Cooperation: Fuji TV ONE "Professional baseball News 2026"