AP Sports Preview: Buffaloes at Fighters

SAPPORO, Japan (Interstat) — The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters host the Orix Buffaloes on Wednesday evening at Sapporo Dome, looking to extend their dominance in the season series.

Nippon Ham (43-33-1) enters with a 5½-game lead over Orix (38-34-1) in the Pacific League standings. The Fighters have won six of the last seven meetings, including a 9-2 victory Tuesday night.

Right-hander Koki Kitayama takes the mound for Nippon Ham after a dominant June. The 25-year-old is 4-0 with a 0.66 ERA over his last four starts, striking out 29 while allowing just two earned runs in 27⅔ innings. His last outing came against Orix on Tuesday, when he allowed two runs on three hits over six innings with five strikeouts.

Kitayama’s home splits are particularly strong. He tossed a complete-game shutout against Lotte on June 23 and another nine-inning gem against Yakult on June 7.

For Orix, right-hander Hiroshi Suzuki will start for the second straight game against Nippon Ham. Suzuki worked 3⅔ scoreless innings in Tuesday’s loss, allowing one hit with four strikeouts after entering in relief. He has allowed just one earned run over his last 10⅔ innings across five appearances.

Suzuki faces a Nippon Ham lineup that produced nine runs Tuesday. Designated hitter Franmil Reyes homered and drove in two runs, while shortstop Tatsuki Mizuno went 3-for-5 with a homer and an RBI.

Orix counters with its own power bat. Shortstop Kotaro Kurebayashi homered and drove in two runs Tuesday. The Buffaloes have scored two runs or fewer in three straight games and four of their last five.

Wednesday’s game is the second of a three-game series. The teams meet again Thursday before Orix returns home to face Seibu and Nippon Ham travels to Rakuten.

Nippon Ham is 4-1 in its last five games overall, while Orix has lost five of six.

According to Interstat projections, Nippon Ham holds a 59.70% win probability, with a projected score of 5-3.

Game time is 6 p.m. local.