Time to Get the Rintaro Sasaki Hype Train Rolling

The start of the Stanford baseball season is now less than three weeks away, and the Cardinal are ready to get back to action at Sunken Diamond.

There are many important pieces to this Stanford team for the upcoming season, including sophomores Tatum Marsh and Charlie Bates, star veterans Jimmy Nati and Brady Reynolds, and a pitching core ready to right their wrongs from the season prior.

But how can we forget Stanford’s best prospect, biggest name, and power threat that is returning to The Farm? Let’s talk about Rintaro Sasaki as we get closer to the upcoming season.

Sasaki broke the Japanese high school home run record with 140 before enrolling at Stanford back in 2024. Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani even talked about how Sasaki’s swing was better than his, creating tons of hype around his name. He was finally eligible to play for Stanford during the 2025 season, and was listed as the top freshman in the country per Baseball America.

Early in the year, Sasaki struggled. He couldn’t find his momentum at the plate, and wouldn’t hit a home run for games. His consistency at the plate wasn’t there either, as he couldn’t seem to get on base enough. However, his field play at first base was great.

A month into the season, Stanford took on Duke, where Sasaki finally put his mark on college baseball. He not only hit his first home run of the season, but his second as well. The Japanese native showed that he truly could be a star for the Cardinal.

He finished the season with a total of 7 home runs, 41 RBI, 54 hits, 8 doubles, and an average of .269. While he didn’t necessarily live up to the lofty expectations that had been heaped upon him, Stanford still has a great player on their hands.

He showcased some of his incredible power, as all seven homers seemed to go far out of the park. In addition, he got much more consistent at the plate, as well as even better in the field.

Going into the 2026 season, it seems like the hype is dying around Sasaki. His underwhelming 2025 season has turned people off, and it looks like, for the first time, Sasaki will play without nearly as much fan fare.

While stocks are lower on Sasaki, the sophomore still has the potential to be the best player on Stanford this season. Once he got settled into the college game, Sasaki looked much better. His power was more consistent, he approach at the plate was more consistent, and he continued to play well in the field. With a full season of experience now behind him, he now has a better opportunity to dominate.

Sasaki could potentially have 25 home runs this season if all goes well, and can reestablish himself as one of the best players in college baseball.

Stanford begins the season on February 13th, where the Cardinal look to make their way back to the NCAA Tournament. In order to do so, it’s going to take a lot of output from their stars, especially Sasaki, who will also be looking to raise his own draft stock this season.

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