TOKOROZAWA, Japan (Interstat) — The Seibu Lions host the Nippon-Ham Fighters on Tuesday evening at Seibu Dome, with right-hander Kaima Taira looking to extend a dominant April and the Fighters seeking to end a four-game slide.

Seibu (12-13-1) enters off a 3-0, 10-inning victory Sunday at Rakuten, a game in which Taira threw seven scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out 10. The performance continued a spectacular stretch for Taira, who is 4-0 in his last four starts with a 0.64 ERA over 28 innings, striking out 31 batters against five hits.

The Lions have won two of three meetings with Nippon-Ham this season, including a 15-3 rout on April 19, the last time these teams played. In that game, Taira earned the win, allowing two earned runs over six innings with three strikeouts. Seibu has also taken five of its last six games overall.

Nippon-Ham (11-15) has lost four straight, most recently a 9-4 defeat Sunday at Orix. The Fighters have fallen eight games below .500 since a pair of wins over Seibu on April 18. Reliever Takumi Yamamoto has been inconsistent of late; in his last two outings, also at Orix, he pitched two scoreless innings with three strikeouts on Sunday but allowed one earned run in one inning two days earlier.

Tuesday’s game is the opener of a three-game set. Seibu sends its pitching staff that has held Nippon-Ham to three runs or fewer in two of the three meetings this season. The Lions also have outscored the Fighters 23-11 in those games.

The Fighters’ offense has struggled, scoring just 13 runs during the four-game skid. Nippon-Ham’s bullpen, which posted a 3.60 ERA across 10 innings against Orix, will need to contain a Seibu lineup that produced 15 runs in the April 19 victory.

Gambling odds installed Nippon-Ham as a +1.5 favorite despite the losing streak, with an over/under of 6.0 runs. Interstat’s game simulator projects a 5-3 Seibu win, though the same outlet’s ELO system gives the Fighters a 57.7% probability of victory.

The Lions continue their homestand Wednesday and Thursday against the same opponent before traveling to Chiba Lotte for a three-game series starting May 1. The Fighters will play the Lions here again Wednesday and Thursday before returning home to host Orix on May 1.