SoftBank beat DeNA 4-3 in extra innings to take a 2-0 Japan Series lead

SoftBank beat DeNA 4-3 in 10 innings in the second game of Japan’s 2026 baseball championship series in Yokohama.

DeNA had taken a 3-2 lead in the eighth when Yoshitomo Tsutsugo hit a three-run homer.

Hotaka Yamakawa tied the game with a solo homer in the ninth, hitting the ball beyond the left-field stands.

SoftBank then won in the 10th when Yuto Kawamura hit a solo home run off DeNA reliever Hiromu Ise.

Three home runs by DeNA’s relievers turned the lead into a loss after Yamakawa’s tie and Kawamura’s winning hit.

DeNA manager Ryōji Aikawa said he would not blame closer Reynolds, adding that the battery should review the pitch and move on.

SoftBank now leads the series 2-0, while DeNA says it will keep playing its own style; in 2024, DeNA lost the first two games before winning four straight.