Every once in a while, a new prodigy emerges, ready to take baseball by storm. This time, it’s Rintaro Sasaki. He might not be a household name—yet. But his record-breaking performances have already put him in the spotlight.

At just 20 years old, Sasaki isn’t just any power hitter—he’s Japan’s home run king. And if that’s not intriguing enough, how about this? He hails from the same high school as Shohei Ohtani. Hanamaki Higashi has produced legends before, and Sasaki looks poised to be its next great export.

Japan has given baseball some of its greatest stars. So, what makes this Sasaki special? Why is everyone talking about him? The answer might just change the game

The teen trailblazer hit an incredible 140 home runs, shattering Japan’s high school home run record. While at Hanamaki Higashi, he walked twice as many times as he struck out, slashing at a .413/.514/.808. Sasaki, a 6-foot-0, 275-pound first baseman, set a high school record in Japan. Well, he set the record by going past Shohei Ohtani! For the unversed, the Angels’ left-handed pitcher, Yusei Kikuchi, and Ohtani are both products of Hanamaki Higashi High School, where Ohtani’s father, Hiroshi Sasaki, is the head baseball coach. Poetic justice for Sasaki Sr.

MLB.com shared the moment of Sasaki’s first college home run, reflecting the buzz this teen is generating and that the next big thing is in the making. The power he generated hitting the homer can make the suitors get on their knees. Considering the skills Rintaro Sasaki is projecting, can the fans expect him to land on American soil soon? Surprise! Sasaki is already in the US and signed with the Cardinals! No, he is not going to play in the major or minor leagues, but his college baseball journey will continue in the US. 

Rintaro Sasaki has taken a route less-travelled

Considering how Sasaki is going, it was well expected that he would be the #1 pick in the NPB draft, but Sasaki chose to take a road less traveled. He chose to play college baseball for the Cardinals in the US. Probably, his MLB journey will thus be fast-forwarded, and he might enter the draft as early as 2026. Contrary to the top Japanese prospects in the MLB, a unique strategy. All of the MLB stars, including Yu Darvish, Masahiro Tanaka, Hideki Matsui, Ichiro Suzuki, and Shohei Ohtani, came from the NPB to start with the MLB.

“It has always been my childhood dream to play in MLB,” Rintaro Sasaki said. His stepping stones reflect his objective of getting into the MLB scene soon. The Stanford program is known for producing some of the finest stars of MLB, like Bob Boone and Tommy Edman. Thus, Sasaki will have the chance to grow into a major league draft prospect during the following two Stanford baseball seasons. It will offer Sasaki the chance to improve his defense, conditioning, and ability to adapt to a different level of competition in terms of pitch velocity.

Rintaro Sasaki’s alternative route, if successful, will open a new door for Japanese talents to get into the MLB scene. Till then, Sasaki’s power hitting will be a thing to watch out for in college baseball this year. 

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