Taiwan slugger Anke Lin returns to Seibu lineup after earning weekly honors, goes hitless

Anke Lin’s strong return to the Seibu Lions lineup stalled against Lotte, as the Taiwanese slugger went hitless in a 1-0 shutout loss.

Lin started as Seibu’s No. 7 designated hitter. He struck out in his first at-bat and later hit two fly balls to center field. Seibu’s final ninth-inning rally ended before Lin had another chance to bat.

The 3-for-0 performance left Lin 0-for-3 with one strikeout and lowered his season batting average to .235. He had returned to the first team on Aug. 25 after missing time with left-knee pain, and had collected hits in each of his first four games back.

Before this game, Lin had gone 5-for-13, with a .385 batting average and a 1.082 on-base-plus-slugging figure. He had also hit a three-run homer against Rakuten, his seventh of the season, and driven in five runs. That surge earned him a place among Pacific League TV’s weekly best nine players.

Lotte left-hander Shuta Takano worked seven innings, allowed two hits, struck out eight and gave up no runs for his second win. Seibu ace Kaima Taira also pitched seven innings, allowing six hits and one run while striking out eight, but took his fourth loss.