Fighters snap Buffaloes’ streak
The Buffaloes continued to play hard on Thursday, but couldn’t get past rookie Hiromi Ito in Osaka as their streak of winning 11 consecutive decisions came to an end.
Fighters 5, Buffaloes 2
At Osaka‘s Kyocera Dome, Hiromi Ito (5-4) who was named the PL’s best player in interleague after Orix ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who won the MVP award, ended the winning streak of this year’s top interleague team, by stranding seven runners over six innings, allowing two runs and winning his fourth straight start.
Former Fighters closer Hirotoshi Masui (2-5) started for the Buffaloes, and unlike Ito, couldn’t keep the visitors from cashing in their runners. Kensuke Kondo doubled with two outs in the first, and scored on a Wang Po-jung single.
Haruki Nishikawa reached on a third-inning infield single, stole second and scored on a Yuto Takahama single. Wang doubled, again with two outs, to make it a 3-0 game. Yuki Nomura made it 4-0 in the fourth with his first homer. After Orix scored in the fourth, Ito stranded two more runners in the fifth, and that ended the Buffaloes’ chances.
Toshihiro Sugiura saved his 13th game.
Hawks 7, Marines 2
At Chiba’s Zozo Marine Stadium, it was Yuki Yanagita vs Roki Sasaki (1-1), as the SoftBank Star opened the scoring in the first with his 17th home run off the rookie. Hawks starter Shota Takeda (4-3) had one rough inning in the first, when the Marines took a 2-1 lead, Brandon Laird’s RBI single breaking a 1-1 tie.
Sasaki struck out six, walked one and allowed five hits over 5-1/3 innings. He retired 13 batters before Kenta Imamiya’s leadoff double in sixth. A Masaki Mimori triple tied it and Yanagita ripped a single up the middle to put the Hawks up for good. He’d add a solo homer in the Hawks’ four-run ninth.
Takeda struck out six, walked three, hit one and gave up five hits.
Tigers 6, Dragons 0
At Nagoya‘s Vantelin Dome, Hanshin’s Joe Gunkel (6-0) allowed six hits but no walks while striking out five over seven innings, while rookie Takumu Nakano, Jefry Marte and Yusuke Oyama powered the offense. Nakano reached base three times, scored three runs and drove in one with a sacrifice fly. Marte singled twice, doubled, walked and drove in two runs, while Oyama singled twice and had a pair of sacrifice flies.
Chunichi’s Yuichiro Okano (0-2) allowed four runs over four-plus innings.
Swallows 4, Carp 1
At Hiroshima’s Mazda Stadium, Keiji Takahashi (2-0) allowed a run over 6-2/3 innings, Munetaka Murakami hit a two-run homer, his Japan-best 22nd, Jose Osuna doubled twice and singled, and Scot McGough saved his 15th game.
The Swallows have now won four straight and eight of nine to set up a battle for second place with the Giants over the weekend. Yakult trails the Tigers by five games, with Yomiuri a half-game back in third.
Starting pitchers
Pacific League
Eagles vs Hawks: Rakuten Seimei Park Miyagi 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Takahiro Norimoto (5-3, 3.28) vs Shuta Ishikawa (3-6, 2.93)
Buffaloes vs Lions: Kyocera Dome (Osaka) 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Yoshinobu Yamamoto (7-5, 2.04) vs Kona Takahashi (5-3, 3.81)
Central League
Swallows vs Giants: Jingu Stadium 5:30 pm, 4:30 am EDT
Masanori Ishikawa (3-1, 2.05) vs Cristopher Crisostomo Mercedes (2-1, 4.30)
Tigers vs BayStars: Koshien Stadium 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Yuki Nishi (4-3, 3.01) vs Haruhiro Hamaguchi (4-5, 3.39)
Carp vs Dragons: Mazda Stadium 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Shogo Tamamura (1-3, 3.54) vs Yuya Yanagi (5-3, 2.31)
Active roster moves 6/24/2021
Deactivated players can be re-activated from 7/4
Central League
Activated
| Tigers | P | 49 | Joe Gunkel |
| Carp | P | 34 | Kouya Takahashi |
| Carp | OF | 1 | Seiya Suzuki |
| Swallows | P | 47 | Keiji Takahashi |
Dectivated
| Giants | IF | 93 | Hayato Hirama |
| Carp | OF | 59 | Minoru Omori |
| Swallows | P | 54 | Cy Sneed |
Pacific League
Activated
| Marines | P | 17 | Roki Sasaki |
| Buffaloes | P | 17 | Hirotoshi Masui |
Dectivated
| Marines | P | 41 | Kakeru Narita |
| Lions | OF | 72 | Seiji Kawagoe |
| Fighters | P | 52 | Takahide Ikeda |
| Buffaloes | P | 21 | Daichi Takeyasu |
