The SoftBank Hawks' Livan Moinelo (29) set a record for most strikeouts in a game by a foreign pitcher in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), but the team suffered a shocking walk-off loss.

Moinelo started the game against the Yakult Swallows on the 6th at Meiji Jingu Stadium in Tokyo, throwing 8 innings with 3 hits, 2 walks, 18 strikeouts, and no earned runs.

Moinelo, who has recorded 35 wins, 14 losses, 135 holds, and 40 saves with an earned run average of 1.84 in 341 career NPB games (532⅔ innings) since 2017, has been a long-serving foreign pitcher in Japan. He transitioned to a starting pitcher last year, performing as the ace, and faced Korea with the Cuba national team in the 2024 Premier 12. This season, he has also achieved good results with 5 wins and an earned run average of 1.30 in 10 games (69⅓ innings).

Moinelo almost became the protagonist of the game. He dominated the Yakult lineup perfectly, striking out a remarkable 18 batters by the 8th inning. Moinelo had one strikeout left to tie the record of 19 set by Roki Sasaki (Dodgers) in 2022 when he handed over the mound to closer Roberto Osuna with a 2-0 lead at the bottom of the 9th and finished his outing.

Things started to fall apart for SoftBank once Moinelo left the mound. Osuna issued a straight walk to the leadoff batter Yuhei Nakamura and allowed a game-tying two-run home run to Jose Osuna. Eventually, the game went into extra innings, where Yakult's Ryusei Takeooka hit a walk-off solo home run, culminating in a dramatic comeback.

Japanese media outlet SANSPO reported, "SoftBank, the only team to start their interleague games with three consecutive wins, suffered a nightmarish walk-off loss in an away game. Although Moinelo achieved a franchise record as well as an NPB record for foreign pitchers with 18 strikeouts, it didn’t lead to a victory," conveying the shocking defeat of SoftBank.

SoftBank manager Hiroki Kokubo noted, "Moinelo was over 110 pitches. I felt he was throwing while squeezing out his strength," and apologized for the bullpen blowing the lead after the substitution, saying, "I felt sorry for Moinelo." Osuna, who gave up the tying home run, also stated, "Moinelo pitched wonderfully. I am truly sorry."

Regarding his 18 strikeout record, Moinelo said, "I didn't realize I had achieved the record. One day, someone will break it," and calmly acknowledged that the substitution in the 9th was reasonable, stating, "The most important thing during the season is to stay healthy while pitching."

[OSEN]