○Orix 3-1 Softbank● (27th, Kyocera Dome Osaka)
He encouraged his struggling team with his pitching. Orix’s left-handed pitcher, Taiya Miyagi, who had been sidelined with a strained left pectoral muscle, returned for the first time in 50 days.
He swung his arm boldly against the strong Softbank batting line. In the second inning, he was in a pinch with runners on first and third and one out due to an error by his teammates, but he got No. 7 Kai Takuya to hit a line drive to second base and No. 8 Hirose Ryuta to hit a fly ball to second base. In both cases, his fastball of around 150 km/h, which he uses to hit the inside corner of right-handed batters, was effective.
He threw 85 pitches, giving up no runs in five innings, earning his third win. He allowed only two hits and struck out six batters, a performance that was hard to believe was his first since his return to the team on May 8 against Rakuten. “I felt good pitching. I think I was able to fulfill my role,” he said, satisfied with his performance.
It’s been five years since he went pro from Konan High School in Okinawa, but this is the first time he’s had to take a long break due to injury. He wasn’t able to help the struggling team. “There were games where I wanted to pitch and win. I had no choice but to cheer them on, so it was a strange feeling.” With regret in his heart, he steadily worked on his rehabilitation and returned to the playing field.
With the transfer of the team’s mainstay Yoshinobu Yamamoto to the Dodgers in the US, Miyagi is expected to perform as the ace this season. “It’s more important for the team to win one game at a time than for me,” Miyagi says. Just like the team, he has not given up on the challenge to win the Pacific League for the fourth consecutive time.[Yuji Ishikawa]