Apr 17, 2021
The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters rediscovered some of their missing power in time to welcome Masahiro Tanaka back to Japan.
Sho Nakata hit a two-run homer in the first inning, Kazunari Ishii went deep in the second and the Fighters spoiled Tanaka s season debut with a 4-1 win over the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles on Saturday afternoon at Tokyo Dome. He s a pitcher who represents Japan, he s an amazing pitcher, Nakata said of his homer in the first inning. I just connected and I m glad I got that hit.
Tanaka, making his highly anticipated return to Japan after seven seasons with the New York Yankees, allowed three runs over five innings. He was charged with the loss, which ended a 28-game regular-season win streak that began in 2012. Tanaka also remained stuck on 99 career NPB wins.
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