Ballpark de Tsukamaete!

Ballpark de Tsukamaete! – A Hidden Gem of Spring 2025

Every anime season, I set aside a few shows to binge once they're complete—sometimes I hit gold, sometimes I end up dropping a dud. But this time? Ballpark de Tsukamaete! turned out to be a grand slam.

This anime flew under the radar among the many titles released in Spring 2025, but it ended up being one of the most refreshing and underrated series of the season. At first glance, it looks like your typical sports anime—but it’s far from it. While most sports shows focus solely on the players' struggles, rivalries, and the pressure of competition, ... Ballpark de Tsukamaete! offers a broader, more human perspective. It explores not just the game, but also the lives of the stadium staff, their interactions with fans, their daily challenges, and—most importantly—their love for beer (yes, beer plays an unexpectedly wholesome role here).

The pacing is on the slower side, but it works in the show's favor. It lets you soak in the atmosphere of the stadium and see baseball through the eyes of everyday people—the die-hard fans, the vendors, and the employees who make each game possible. There are also some light romantic subplots sprinkled throughout, which add humor and warmth without overpowering the main themes.

Produced by EMT Squared, a studio I’d previously considered above average, this anime is where they truly hit the ball out of the park (pun fully intended). From direction to voice acting to art and sound design, everything sits comfortably at a solid 7/10 across the board. It's consistent, sincere, and genuinely enjoyable.

My only regret? Not watching this sooner. If you’re tired of the same recycled tropes each season, this is your wildcard pick. It’s different, heartfelt, and full of unexpected charm. Definitely recommended for regular anime watchers who want something grounded yet uplifting.

This anime really puts me in a tough spot. If I were to give a direct rating, it'd be like 6.49....just barely enough to round down to 6 but also a cut above most 6/10 shows. Generally speaking, I don't even watch to completion most 6/10 shows to begin with....

What can I say? Everything about this show is OKAY. Characters are okay, animation is OK, voice acting, episodic arcs, and storytelling, and everything else is just average. I didn't hate any particular episode with a burning passion, and I was never compelled to watch the next episode with much rapt attention either, though.

Ruriko is the ... titular female lead, while Murata is the male lead; both are heavily archetypal of the relationship between the bratty, high-energy junior teasing her shy male senior. There's not actually much of any romance, if at all, and I didn't find it to be particularly annoying or endearing too though. It's...just average? Many other characters prop up, all of which with a minor story to tell. There is a large, static set of side characters that each play their own role in the anime, all encompassing the ballpark, and I can't say I hate any character or love them. That's a lie, actually. I did find Dennis Young to be particularly annoying, but other characters offset his annoying personality. For example, Kojiro is a well-depicted veteran of the constantly underperforming Motorsuns team.

I have run out of things to say. It's an average slice of life encompassing a Japanese Baseball League stadium of an established, but below average professional team. There, you encounter variety of characters, encounters, and episodic scenarios that are over-embellished but good enough. I didn't have to slog myself through the show, but I wasn't particularly high energy about watching the next episode. I'll probably forget all of the contents of this show sooner rather than later, but I don't regret watching it either.

In my reviews i stick to a strict rating system, where as all else is subject to rabid ruminations and sober interjections from the future, you can always reference the numbers to understand how i felt about the art in question. The numbers are arbitrary. The system is flawed, complicated, and stupid. you'll understand it right away.




final grade: lukewarm hot chocolate

should you watch?:
sometimes i guess i might drink lukewarm hot chocolate, it never hits how it thought it should, but i thought i might maybe could have liked it for some reason. that's why maybe you don't drink lukewarm hot chocolate.

... Competence:65
Creativity:35
Aesthetics:10
Vibes:55
Genius: 5
Thrill: 5
Substance: 15
characters: 55
Dialogue: 55
impact: 10
soundtrack: 5
look/style: 5
story: 5

competence:
this show is as good as it could be or would need to be. i could have ten hundred of these a day, i could probably have ten thousand of these in a week, if we all put our hearts into it, i'm sure all of us will do good work at the ballpark!

creativity:
i dont know if i ever seen a sports anime revolve around the stadium more so then any one character, so it was an interesting angle, but ultimately i only kept watching hope to see some of my favorite characters again.

aesthetics:
everything is like silver spoon but bad

vibes:
you often feel cheerful for all the various peoples in the stadium, otherwise it's just boredom

genius:
this is a show for simple minded Andy's.

thrill:
there is nothing thrilling about this.

substance:
this really has nothing to say, and if it did, it'd probably say to always go to sleep early so you can wake up and get to work on time!

characters:
a couple lame ducks, a couple of sweethearts, a couple of tropes, and my new favorite baseball mascot, fuck you dinger, i hereby deny all previous affiliations with dinger the dinosaur of the colorado rockies.

dialogue:
everyone said everything youd expect them to say and you smiled and said yea thats nice bitch just the way i like it now do it again.

impact:
i think i will forget ever watched this anime

soundtrack:
i remember nothing

look/style
i remember nothing

story:
here's a baseball stadium. the story.