Shota Imanaga plays against Shohei Otani for the first time, holding him down in 2 consecutive at-bats and pitching well with no runs allowed in 4 innings.

Major League Baseball pitcher Shota Imanaga of the Cubs faced off against Dodgers' Shohei Otani for the first time in both Japan and the United States, and pitched well, holding him down in two consecutive at-bats and pitching four innings with no runs allowed.

Pitcher Imanaga, who earned his first win in his major league debut, took the starting pitcher on the 7th, 5 days into the game against the Dodgers in his home base of Chicago.

This is the first time pitcher Imanaga and Otani, who contributed to Japan's victory in last year's WBC = World Baseball Classic, will face off in the first inning between Japan and the U.S. This will be Otani's first at-bat with no out runners. After pitcher Eiji drove in, he was held up for a foul, but he was able to get a strikeout with his ninth pitch, a powerful fastball of 151.9km/h.

Immediately after, the Cubs' batting line scored a three-run lead in the back of the first inning, and in the following second inning, No. 2 and right fielder Seiya Suzuki hit a sacrifice fly to score an additional run, giving them a 4-0 lead and supporting pitcher Imanaga. .

Pitcher Imanaga, who received support, hit Otani with a foul fly to third in the third inning and held him down for the second consecutive at-bat.He continued to pitch at a good tempo, facing the Dodgers' strong batting lineup until the fourth inning, with two hits and a walk. They didn't give up a single goal and kept the game scoreless.

After this, the game was interrupted due to rain, and resumed approximately 3 hours later, but pitcher Imanaga was replaced, so the second win was postponed, just before the right to win the winning pitcher.

On the other hand, Dodgers' Otani hit his first three-base hit of the season off a Cubs relief pitcher in his third at-bat of the sixth inning after the game restarted, and then in the eighth inning, the score was 0-for-8, with two outs and a runner on first base. At bat, he caught a fastball in the low 150km/h range and hit a timely two-base hit over the head of the center fielder, returning one point.

Otani had two hits and one RBI in four at-bats, marking his fourth consecutive game with multiple hits.

Also, Cubs player Suzuki had no hits in 3 at-bats in this game, but he did score 1 RBI.

The Cubs won 8-1 and advanced to their third straight game against the Dodgers with a 2-1 record.

Shota Imanaga ``The battle is a thin line, I just happened to be able to suppress it''

Pitcher Shota Imanaga, who contributed to the victory by pitching well and pitching no runs in the fourth inning, reflected on the game, saying, ``I'm glad my team won. There were no walks and we pitched patiently.''

Regarding the fact that he was replaced when he was just one inning away from winning the pitch, he said, ``I don't worry about that. I think it's the American style, so it's easy to change my mind.It doesn't bother me.'' .

Regarding his confrontation with Otani, he said, ``It's a fine line, so the ball I hit could have been a home run.Today, I was able to hold it down by chance.I'll do my best to continue this.'' Ta.

Shohei Otani practices in the bullpen with Yoshinobu Yamamoto

Otani, who is continuing to rehabilitate his right elbow as a pitcher, was unable to play catch on the field due to rain before the game, so he practiced in the bullpen indoors with pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

The two practiced next to each other, and Ohtani threw about 50 pitches from just in front of the mound.

During the match, Otani imitated pitcher Yamamoto's pitching form, and there was a scene where the two laughed together, and the two looked relaxed from beginning to end.