TOKOROZAWA, Japan (Interstat) — The Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, clinging to playoff positioning, will visit the Saitama Seibu Lions for an evening game at Seibu Dome on Thursday looking to continue their recent dominance in the series.

The Fighters (78-56-3) have won five of their last six meetings with the Lions (60-71-4), including a three-game sweep from Sept. 13-15 in which Nippon-Ham outscored Seibu 21-12. Overall this season, Nippon-Ham holds a 9-5-1 advantage in the head-to-head matchup.

Nippon-Ham enters the contest looking to rebound from a 7-0 shutout loss to the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles on Tuesday. Prior to that, the Fighters had won two of their previous three games.

The Lions have struggled offensively of late, having been shut out in their last two contests, including a 5-0 loss to the Chiba Lotte Marines on Wednesday. Seibu has managed just one win in its last five games.

According to Interstat’s game simulator, Nippon-Ham is projected to win 4-2. The ELO system gives the Fighters a 60.50 percent probability of victory. Nippon-Ham is installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of +1.5, and the over/under for the game is set at 5.0.

Following Thursday’s contest, the two teams will meet again at Seibu Dome on Friday to conclude their two-game set.