On September 17th from 18:00, the 23rd game between the Orix Buffaloes and Fukuoka Softbank will be held at Kyocera Dome Osaka.

【Match Record】Orix Buffaloes (4th) vs Fukuoka Softbank (1st) 10 wins, 12 losses

【Probable Starters】
Orix Buffaloes: pitcher Ryuhei Sotani 13 games, 5 wins, 7 losses, ERA 4.05
Fukuoka Softbank: pitcher Haru Matsumoto 19 games, 10 wins, 3 losses, ERA 2.96

For the Orix Buffaloes, we want to focus on player Kotaro Kobayashi, who recorded 3 hits the previous day. Against the opponent's starter, pitcher Haru Matsumoto, he has 4 hits in 11 At Bats this season and marked a bases loaded Home Run last season. Expectations are high for a powerful hit from the regular short stop, who has already recorded a career-high 15 Home Runs. Starting pitcher Ryuhei Sotani has faced Fukuoka Softbank twice this season; while he had 7 scoreless innings on August 23rd, he gave up 5 runs in 3 innings on the 30th. He will be looking for revenge in this start.

Fukuoka Softbank, whose magic number for the championship became "2" after an 8-game winning streak, will start pitcher Haru Matsumoto. He has appeared in 5 games against the Orix Buffaloes this season, maintaining an ERA of 2.23. On the hitting side, expectations are high for player Tatsuru Yanagimachi, who is in good form this September. In this series, he has recorded 3 hits and 2 RBI in 8 At Bats, including timely hits in two consecutive games. Can the hit from this recovered skilled hitter decide the third consecutive championship?

Text by Seiichi Nakagawa