Baseball

Slugger Rintaro Sasaki Shines for Stanford in College Debut

Iwate Prefecture native Rintaro Sasaki, who hit 140 home runs in high school, excels at bat and in the field in Stanford's 13-1 rout of Cal State Fullerton.

by
Jack Gallagher
February 16, 2025

Rintaro Sasaki lived up to his billing in the first game of his collegiate career, going 2-for-5 and driving in a team-high four runs in Stanford University's 13-1 season-opening victory over Cal State Fullerton on Saturday, February 15, in Southern California.

The 183-cm, 125-kg Iwate Prefecture native took the field in the opener of a non-conference doubleheader that was called after seven innings on the 10-run mercy rule. Friday's scheduled opener at Goodwin Field was pushed back a day due to poor field conditions after several days of rain.

Sasaki was humble despite his highly successful debut.

"I was chosen as a first-year student in my first game," Sasaki remarked. "I was aware I could drive in runs for the team. There was a desire to win the first game. I hope I get better in the future. I was glad that I was able to contribute to winning today."

Media Spotlight on Rintaro Sasaki

There was a significant media buildup ahead of Sasaki's first game, with him being profiled in a feature story by The Associated Press earlier in the week. All four games of the series against Fullerton are scheduled to be televised on ESPN+.

Several MLB scouts were on hand to watch the left-handed batting Sasaki, who was selected as the Preseason Freshman of the Year by Baseball America. The 19-year-old, who enrolled at Stanford in the spring of 2024 but did not play, came to the United States as almost a mythical figure after hitting 140 home runs during his high school career in Japan.

Sasaki, wearing No 3, started at first base and batted third for the Cardinal. In the top of the first inning, Sasaki worked the count full against Titans starter Jason Blood before driving in leadoff hitter Cort MacDonald with a groundout to second base to give Stanford a 1-0 lead. The Cardinal added two more runs in the frame to go in front 3-0.

Rintaro Sasaki Gets 1st NCAA Hit in 2nd Inning

In the top of the second, Sasaki came to the plate with the bases loaded and recorded his first NCAA hit by lashing a fastball from Blood into right field to drive in MacDonald again and put the Cardinal up 5-0. Sasaki went on to score later in the frame on a single by shortstop Temo Becerra to make it 8-0 for Stanford.

Sasaki came up again in the third inning against reliever Derek Turner and was called out looking on a 2-2 pitch that appeared inside.

The next at-bat for Sasaki came in the fifth, with one out and runners on the corners, when he popped out to the shortstop on a 1-1 pitch.

Fullerton finally got on the board in the bottom of the sixth, when left fielder Jakob Schardt drove in a run with a single to right.

Another Hit for Rintaro Sasaki in the 7th

Sasaki's final trip to the plate came in the seventh against reliever Jayden Harper with the bases loaded and no outs. The slugger ripped a 1-1 pitch up the middle to drive in two more runs. Sasaki scored later in the frame on a bases-loaded walk to put Stanford up 13-1.

The burly Sasaki also showed his skill in the field with a couple of nice plays in the first game.

Stanford starter Matt Scott went 5⅓ innings for the win. The right-hander allowed one run on four hits.

Blood took the loss, getting hammered for eight runs in one-plus inning.

Sasaki Adds RBI as Stanford Completes Doubleheader Sweep

Sasaki went 1-for-4 with an RBI double and also fielded well in the nightcap as the Cardinal won 6-3. He blasted a two-out pitch off the wall in left center in the seventh inning off reliever Andrew Wright to put Stanford up 6-0.

Southpaw starter Christian Lim got the victory in the second game after tossing six innings of no-hit ball.

"I am just playing for the team to win," Sasaki stated after the second game concluded.

He added, "I was a little nervous before the first game, but I think I was able to enjoy it. It was good to win."

Sasaki acknowledged that he faced challenges when he first arrived on the Stanford campus last year.

"It was very hard when I first came, but I gained experience and learned in various places, including academics, and got the support of teammates and coaches," Sasaki commented. "I can't speak English 100 percent, but I think my conversation is getting better little by little."

Stanford, which finished 22-33 last season in its final campaign in the Pac-12, is now in its first season as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Fullerton plays in the Big West Conference.

Author: Jack Gallagher

The author is a veteran sports journalist and one of the world's foremost figure skating experts. Find articles and podcasts by Jack on his author page, and find him on X (formerly Twitter) @sportsjapan.