Yuki James Nomura hit his second homer of the spring for the Nippon Ham Fighters, whose starting pitcher, second-year lefty Ryusei Kawano issued five walks en route to allowing nine runs over two innings in a 9-5 loss to the DeNA BayStars on Tuesday.

The BayStars’ second draft pick, 22-year-old second baseman Sugo Maki, rifled three hits in the game with a walk after starting the spring 1-for-8.

At Koshien Stadium, Junya Nishi, the Hanshin Tigers’ top draft pick, dodged a couple of bullets but not a grand slam by Kevin Cron as he allowed four runs over five innings in a 6-4 win over the Hiroshima Carp.

At Osaka’s Kyocera Dome, Albert Suarez of the Yakult Swallows held the Orix Buffaloes to a run over three innings in a 4-1 loss.

In Fukuoka, the Yomiuri Giants’ Angel Sanchez gave up three runs, two earned, over four innings in a 5-3 loss to the SoftBank Hawks. Kenta Imamiya, the Pacific League’s premier shortstop until injuries began taking their toll in 2018 and Seibu’s Sosuke Genda came on the scene, had two more hits in his bid to reclaim the job that was usurped in his absence by a battalion of speedy young upstarts.

One of those guys, PL stolen base champ Ukyo Shuto, blasted a homer off Ryuta Heinai, the Giants’ top draft pick last autumn.

The Daily Sports, which is the Hanshin Tigers’ flagship paper, gleefully reported in its wrap that the Hawks have now beaten the Giants in 12 straight games, including two straight Japan Series sweeps.

Note: The story originally had Shugo Maki as the BayStars’ top pick in last year’s draft. He was their second pick.