For Koutarou Murata, an overworked salaryman, his local ballpark is the only place where he can truly unwind from his arduous daily life. One evening, he is approached by Ruriko, the new lively beer vendor, trying to sell her first drink to him. Koutarou accepts Ruriko's offer, marking the start of their friendship and lots of playful teasing.
While Koutarou tries to enjoy baseball to the fullest and Ruriko diligently seeks for more customers, many fans with heartwarming stories of their own come to fill the ballpark and enjoy the space that brings them all together.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Comentários
worlddestroyer
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.
l0ck0n00
Definite AOTS, maybe even AOTY for me. Thought this would be just one of those underrated anime at the beginning but it turned out to be much, much more. Each character is unique and likable in his/her own way, with a little charming backstory. Every episode has funny moments as well as heartwarming ones that make you either laugh out loud or tear up, especially the last 2 episodes. The Motorsuns stadium does not exist just to play/watch baseball games. It's a close-knit community where the players, the staff and the fans all come together from their various walks of life and connect to one anotherfor lifelong memories.
All along I felt like I was right there inside the stadium for 23 minutes every week. Ballpark is a beautifully scripted show and it hit a grand slam for me.
Now i just cross my fingers for 2nd season, with the pink-haired girl as a new member of the Motorsuns beer vendor team.
Marinate1016
Catch me at the ballpark is one of several shows this season that are in the running for the biggest surprise of the season. I frankly came into this thinking it would be another generic self insert goonerbait romcom about a loser officer worker escaping his problems at baseball stadium with a hot girl. Every incel salaryman’s dream, right? Never been happier to be wrong. This was more a story about the impact sports teams can have on local communities than anything. Seeing all these different people from various walks of life coming together to contribute to a team’s success was awesome, as was seeingthe motorsons lift their community up and give everyone something to feel good about. Sports aren’t just recreation. They can be the escape so many of us desperately need, while teaching us valuable life lessons and making us better people and this show nailed it.
If you’ve ever seen something like “Cheers” from back in the day, you’ll kind of have an idea about what this story’s like. You have an ensemble cast of people who on paper could not be more different from one another, yet they’re surrounded by their love of their local baseball team and the community feel of being at the ballpark. I really liked how the show is done in mini chapter styles allowing for multiple characters to get shine each week, but what’s cool is how most of these chapters were connected via a central theme of each episode and all the episodes led up to the climax of episode 11 which left me in tears. Yes, the show I thought would be generic goonerslop ended up being one of the most powerful of the season, crazy I know. I highly recommend giving this show a chance. It’s really a different sort of anime that I’ve never quite seen before. The community aspect really hit home for me as a big football and basketball fan. I know how sports can help communities heal from tragedies and give people something to cheer for in their darkest moments from first hand experience, so this meant something to me. It’s also amazing how the author gradually showed the culture changing around the baseball team and both fans and players realizing they could do something special.
Funny enough, the MC probably ended up being my least favourite character in this. I felt like all the side characters were more entertaining and while he and the FMC have some development, I liked her better on her own just serving beer in the stadium. He does get some development and becomes a little better towards the end, but I was never really impressed with him. The big draw here for me was definitely the cast at large who took me through a wide range of emotions from laughing, to more serious reflections to straight up crying. There’s a character archetype for everyone in this story just like how real life fanbases are diverse. The show does a great job of making sure everyone feels important.
Production values aren’t anything special here, in fact I’d say the animation is subpar. The voice acting is serviceable as well. This is really just a show that captures your heart in a way that’s hard to explain. You just have to experience it and fall in love with the characters.
If you’re a sports fan or just want to watch a chill and unique anime , highly recommend giving this one a chance. You won’t regret it.
Catch me at the ballpark gets 8 home runs out of 10.
Chuy_diazz
An anime whose central character is one that has been little explored: a sports team's stadium. Over the years, we've seen many spokon that encourage us to take an interest in a particular sport. We've seen many slice-of-life animes that motivate us to take an interest in a specific activity. It's just that until now, we haven't seen a story that makes us more interested in the place than in the activities. Ballpark brings a baseball stadium to life completely. Not in a literal sense; it's not like they humanize it with some kind of power. Rather, they tell us the stories of all the peopleit hosts throughout the regular season.
A stadium has a lot going on at the same time. Therefore, a great decision was made not to have a main character or a defined plot thread to follow. Each episode of the anime is segmented into three stories, each with a main character, always related to the world of baseball and its stadium. We'll see stories of love, overcoming difficulties, friendship, frustration, reunions, laughter, and tears. When it comes to a passion like sports, it's impossible not to have a great repertoire of stories to tell.
On the other hand, the story has its main character, a character we associate with the title of this work. Ruriko, a beer vendor extremely passionate about both her job and sports. She's a protagonist who's always doing something somewhere in the stadium, which gives the story a sense of life. The focus doesn't always have to be on her so she can continue living her life. From time to time, you'll see her as a background character in other people's stories, and it doesn't feel forced because it's normal to meet an employee inside the stadium. She's a character with a lot of charisma, very energetic, and somehow she'll earn your trust. You could say she has what it takes to sell the product that is anime.
The last two episodes of this anime could easily be the best of the season, especially the last one. The finale is an episode that tells us that the anime's story is over, but the story of this stadium and its fans will continue. It's an episode that fits very well with the transitional period we're experiencing. While they prepare for a new sports season, they also prepare us for a new anime season. It's an episode that invites us to embrace change without being tormented by the bad things that happened in the past. It's an episode that you can hold in your memory and heart for a long time.
Ballpark is one of those stories that can go unnoticed but is crafted with great care by the production team. It's one of those shows that makes me grateful that spring has been a slow season because otherwise, I doubt I would have given it a chance during a season with bigger titles. It's an anime you have to give a chance, even if you don't like baseball, believe me, you'll end up being a fan of our beloved MotorSuns.
joemaamah
It's going, going. gone!! A Home Run!! I must admit I wasn't expecting much from this series, I was deathly afraid it was going to be a typical tropey anime sports title. I was so pleasantly surprised when this turned out to be more a Slice of Life situational comedy in a ballpark. I've spent more than my share of time hanging around major and minor league stadiums all over the US and Canada, and I'll testify the producers nailed the vibe perfectly. This is not a high budget project. The art is kind of mid, although the character designs are decent enough. Some of thebackground work is really good. Animation is a bit of an issue, as it is less than average. But they pinched the pennies in areas that don't hurt the overall feel of being at a game. It's adequate to get it's points across.
The writing for this is exceptional, even though there is no overarching plot, other than "What is a season at the ballpark like?" Each episode consists of three short skits. The writers succeed because they nail the myriad of characters they present to us, and how they react to the situations they find themselves in. Everyone from the cute little girl with momma and daddy at her first game, to the grizzled old veteran who's been haunting the bleachers for decades, to the food stand girl, to the security guards and stadium announcer. The ball players get some play and good background work, but they aren't really central to what's going on, except peripherially. Like a real ball game, folks are paying some attention, but there's lots of socializing going on, too.
The central character is Ruriko the beer vending gyaru. She's such a pip. She's at her best when she's teasing the downtrodden salaryman Murata, who's escaping his drab everyday life by going to see as many games as he can. Her positive upbeat personality uplifts everyone she comes in contact with. But she manages to display a range of emotion as the season plays out. The interaction between these two characters starts out pretty goofy, but over the season they come to know and understand one another. It's not cliche romcom nonsense. It's nice to see these two just being comfortably friendly together,
Because this is so character driven, everything hinges on the cast. I'm here to tell you, they hit a grand slam. It helps the direction did a pretty good job with the resources they were given. There's even a notable quality to the sound and it replicating that exciting, noisy fun feeling one gets while at the park. The ED is a lot of fun too.
This is my Rookie of the Year. Comes out of nowhere to become an All-Star. It's not perfect, but just for sheer enjoyment, I'm putting it into my line up card as a 91/100 for an A-. I seriously doubt this would see a second season, as it probably didn't have much mass appeal. But if Season 2 comes around, I'll lace up the ol' spikes and run the bases with it. I'd love to see the MotorSuns make the playoffs.
patkarunungan
Catch Me at the Ballpark!, also known as The Catcher in the Ballpark!, is a lovely slice-of-life anime. I wasn't initially keen on watching it, but I could not ignore how so many anime watchers were praising it on Reddit so I dove in. My unfamiliarity with the term 'ballpark' led me to think that it's just a small, neighbourhood park where kids play baseball. In reality, 'ballpark' is a North American term for what I'd usually call a baseball stadium. If you read the synopsis, you will be left with the impression that this is perhaps another potential romance between the salaryman Murata Koutarou andRuriko grounded in baseball. Whilst Murata and Ruriko are the key characters since the story is anchored on them, the anime is not exclusively about them. It's about fans of the Chiba Motorsuns and in general the community that this team fosters. (The Chiba Motorsuns are a stand-in for their real-world counterpart the Chiba Lotte Marines.)
There are some baseball terms thrown in, but it's not necessary to know them in order to enjoy this anime. It's not a sports anime where the character arcs focus on each individual player. It focuses firstly on fans whom we might casually dismiss as NPCs. These fans can be security guards, the food seller, the mascot, etc. It leaves you with heartfelt impressions.
Segments only last from 5–10 minutes. With its great characterisation, the storytelling is amazing. You don't need to know these characters over the long haul to get to know them and be left with a nice impression of each fan or staff.
I had problems in some anime where, rather than a full episode of a single action, it's actually divided into segments. Such anime tend to have 4-koma manga as source material. But this is not a problem in this anime.
It can be comparable to Bartender (2006), but the emotions you are left with are lighter and feel good.
Ruriko and the rest of the beer vendors are attractive. They are drawn with a pretty face and a sexy figure. Even though Ruriko teases Murata, it doesn't seem to be cheap, sexualised fanservice. The same could be said of the rest of the beer vendors.
There is some CGI that might be glaring, but by and large, they are easy to overlook. Animating the baseball matches, while fairly acceptable, is secondary to the story. It goes without saying that this is great for fans of slice-of-life anime but may not be what fans of sports anime are looking for.
The OP and ED are quite catchy.
In closing, this is a great, heartwarming slice-of-life anime. If you want something different to the typical sports anime, Catch Me at the Ballpark! is a perfect fit.
NOTA BENE: A grade of 7 out of 10 means that I find this anime is very good and two notches above average. I enjoyed watching it.
It is a high score because it is two notches above average. It's not mid or average unlike the misconception of so many people in this site.
My enjoyment spectrum lies from 4 to 10. If I have scored an anime below 4, I actively dislike it.
RaidenZilla
First of all, as a longtime baseball fan who roots for teams with a tendency to underachieve, this anime just spoke directly to my soul. Seriously, you could replace "Chiba Motorsuns" with "Texas A&M Aggies" and everything about the show would have still been the same to me. But the real draw, in my opinion, is how the anime is about baseball but also isn't just about baseball. It's a slice-of-life that even people that aren't into sports can easily jump in to. And of course, people that DO like baseball will love it. So it's for everyone. For that, it's my personal favorite of the Spring2025 season.
HERMIT_PAIMON
A double edge sword it might bore you it might make your mood happy . A hidden gem of 2025 spring It's a treasure for people who enjoys sol with cute moments . A adult rom com is always best because it allows initation unlike other school type rom com shit where mc and girl both tries to hide feelings and drag plot to many seasons ( cringe rom com in simple words) I only seen positive comments so, there isn't any space of negotiation like should i watch this or not . Note: this anime has a lot of food shots so, watch at your ownrisk because it might make you hungry .
Acryllcs
Give me like 3 more seasons of this peak anime. Totally blew my mind, did not expect to like this anime this much. Had me hooked every week, wanting more. Would love to see other takes on different perspectives of a daily job (like a waterpark, museum, a school, etc). Pros: [] The stacked cast. - The amount of characters this show gave us was incredible. I was doubtful that it would be too much, but I was proven wrong. Did I care more for certain characters than others? Yes, but they all gave a different perspective on what goes on and off a baseball game. Also lovedhow, at the halfway mark for each episode, we would unlock the character for their respective episode.
[] Great slice of life to watch.
- It was so chill watching this weekly, you could just pop an episode on and you wouldn't even realize 20 minutes had passed. Would for sure rewatch again sometime in the future. Would not mind if next season were to have 24 episodes.
Con:
[] This isn't even really a con, but I wish it were more mainstream.
- I feel like a lot of people would enjoy this anime.
bossunhimeswitch
This anime was one of my favorites of its cour. I looked forward to each new episode. There was a lot of things to like about it for me. First off, the characters were really easy to like and easy to root for. I especially enjoyed Ruriko and I think making her the lead was a wide choice. I also liked that this anime took a slice of life approach to the story rather than a sports anime approach to the story. We got to know the people working and playing for the Motor Suns. There was less focus on the drama of winning andmore on the oddities of living. That gave it a unique spin for a baseball anime also a unique spin for a slice of life anime. I also appreciated the sense of humor that the story had. It was really nice.
If you're looking for a quick watch where there isn't a lot of high stakes drama, then this is a good watch. If you want something less episodic and with a larger plot than just simply observing the workers, fans, and players at the stadium for a season, then this might not be what you're looking for.
BrotherCoa
On the first glance this looks like standard sports anime show, but the more you look into it you realize that it is less about the sport and more about the people around it. Animation and music: nothing special on this front. Animation is subpar but for this anime it is working quite well as there are not real action sequences. Music is unfortunately very forgettable. Overall industry standard these days, I will give praise in not doing copy-paste thing with the crowds that many anime know to do these days. Characters: too many to count. From old security guard, to famous player wife, to vendoryoung lady, to other vendor girls, baseball players, mascot... All of them get their 5 minutes to shine in this anime, and while some of them get some progress the number of them is so big that nobody gets enough time to be unique. Except for two characters: vendor girl Ruriko, who is star of this show, and Murata who is regular fan. Ruriko is the one that gets most development during show as she has most spotlight. Her interactions with others and dynamic between them is what makes this show to really shine. Something I cannot say for Murata, who only got a little more self-confidence by the last episode.
Story: the story is not concentrating around one person but rather on entire baseball team, people who work at the stadium and fans who visit every game. It lasts for one whole season and it covers a lot in this 12 episodes. The plot itself can change up to 3 times during the episode, jumping from character to character and how they resolve their current issue. Some situations are quite hilarious and every one where Rukriko is star is a pure joy to watch. But those who like to have one consistent plot during the progress of the series may find this not to their taste.
Final grade: 7. It was a time well spent with few laughs here and there and a lot of wholesome moments in between.
I would recommend this show to people who are interested in SoL plotline that focus more on a people aroudn said sport than sport itself.
Salvatierra21
Tsukamaete Ballpark! A slice-of-life sports anime with comedy and a touch of light romance, this anime takes us through different connected stories exploring the business operations, the staff, and the regular fans of a baseball stadium, all while rooting for their team to advance to the league. We already had an anime exploring the financial side of baseball, Gurazeni, but Tsukamaete Ballpark! This is much better, the slow pace fits well with the sketches, each character is more charismatic, the central axis being the team of stadium vendors gives a fresh air to this type of anime and its main couple Murata, an office workerand Ruriko, a saleswoman, show great chemistry in every scene they have. You don't feel like the jokes are being repeated over and over again. I hope it has another season since the manga is still airing, but time will tell since the anime went on a low profile.
EMT Squared showed a simple animation that was well handled, the CGI was not very noticeable to save on background and each character design is not disproportionate. The OP is simple and logical, knowing how to show the theme of the plot without spoilers. I think the original ED wanted to go viral to have the dance of the season, but I don't think they achieved it for the next one.
Now a little reflection since this anime also targets those office workers, especially Japanese people with heavy jobs who don't have time to meet pretty girls. Take this anime purely for fun and not for advice. loving there are better ways to meet girls if you go to a game don't go especially because of the saleswomen most of the time you will just be another customer if they talk to you nicely that is their selling technique nowadays with the economy like this being a regular buyer is expensive example an economic ticket 1000 yen because the team is not very popular plus the expense of the large lunch and fried chicken 2500 or 3000 yen and each glass of beer 700 yen minimum you would drink 5 glasses 3500 yen giving a total of 7000 yen taking into account if the team advances in the league until the finals the price of the ticket will increase and going to almost all the games of the season so that the girl does not forget you results in a lot of expense few chances of getting a girl but hey it's your money if you try to spend it in moderation
GT3_gamer
Boy, oh boy. What do we have here? A gem in the hard stone? Seriously, though, I didn't expect this anime to be soooo good. It really felt like a SOL genre, like one of those old shows where there isn't any major plotline, and it's just a show about the life of the MC interacting with people around him/her. And this one really said, "Well, you're not going to get just one POV, we give you all of them", and let me tell you it is absolutely refreshing to see this type of anime from all the trashy isekai power fantasy shonen. This has to beone of the most hype anime that I waited every week to watch. It's that good.
How did I find this?
It was actually one of those times when I browsed MAL and tried to figure out what I wanted to watch for the next season, and this was one of the anime that caught my eye.
Appealing (Why did I get into the anime?)
Two subjects. The baseball and Ruriko.
NGL, I immediately drew into this anime because of the thumbnail showing Ruriko. Then I read the summary, and it was about baseball. I was like, "Well, don't mind if I do. Two birds with one stone, ey?"
Platform
It's only available on Crunchyroll, but... welp, you know how that service is kind of trash nowadays, right? That's why I do the usual. Yaaar
The review;
Plot/Story
Like I said, there isn't any major plot, unless we're talking about the goal of the MotorSuns baseball team. It's not really the main focus of the anime, but they keep bringing it up until the very end of the anime. Their journey actually really sweet and wholesome. Not only the players, but also the staff and the fans. It's absolutely amazing to watch them grow and help each other out.
Character
Oh boy, I don't think I have enough space to talk about this because I don't even consider Murata as MC. No, no, no, I believe the whole MotorSuns stadium is the MC. You know why? It is because of this stadium that all of the characters can grow. From the beer vendor girls (Ruriko, Sara, Kohinata, Kokoro, Aona) to the security guards (Ryuuichi and Reiji) to the players (Dennis, Bryan, Shioshio, Wataru, Mitsui, and Kojiro), even the fans, and other staff, to a freaking NEWS OUTLET REPORTER. It is wild how the author ties the story together and makes it into an exciting story. Every day is a new day, and a new day brings a new story.
OST/SFX
Boy, oh boy. This actually clears both OP and ED. Like, "SEI SEI KIMI NO BOKUNI MUKETE SAKEBO PLAYBALL!" It is so good every time the anime starts to shout that out loud. And then the ending. My god, can't it be cuter than this? The vendor girls are already cute, and then you go ahead and make them dance with a chibi art style. Oh boy, I love them.
And the SFX on the anime itself... feels really generic, I don't hear a lot of unique ones that I can point out, but nonetheless, I give you all 2 thumbs up.
Animation
Now, for this section, this anime in particular doesn't have appealing animation. No joke, if you watch just one episode alone, you can actually point out which section of the animation bothers you a lot. I'm not joking, I remember that one episode where Sara's face became big but her eyes shrank. That was an experience and a half; it actually gave a lot of giggles, but also bothered me a bit.
VA
And then last but not least, the VA... You know what? 2 thumbs up. I don't really need to say much.
Conclusion
The good;
It's enjoyable when you watch this with friends or family. It's so calming and heart-warming.
The bad;
Sad that this anime won't get a second season.
Overall, solid 9/10.
Definitely, a recommendation of the season. It is a must-watch if you like SOL.
