by It has been announced that Tatsuro Suga’s popular manga ” Catch Me at the Ballpark !” will be adapted into a TV anime series and broadcast in 2025. Ai Fairouz and Keiji Inomata will star in the series, and the teaser PV, staff, and critical visuals have also been announced.
The original is a comedy about a baseball stadium full of smiles and tears, currently serialized in “Morning” (published by Kodansha). Set at a specific professional baseball stadium, the story depicts the human drama of various people who gather there, including Ruriko, a rookie beer girl who looks like a gal but has a pure personality, and Murata, who finds solace in stopping by the stadium on his way home from work to watch baseball games.
The latest 15th volume of the original manga will be released on November 21st. Ai Fairouz plays Ruriko, who works at Chiba Motorsun Stadium, and Inomata plays Murata, a corporate slave salaryman and baseball fanatic who becomes Ruriko’s first regular customer.
The teaser PV shows the scene where Ruriko and Murata meet; Ruriko works at the stadium. Murata enjoys watching baseball, and other stadium residents, such as members of the Chiba Motor Suns, security guards working there, and spectators. The staff includes director Junichi Kitamura of “Isekai wa Fumo Mo De Sama Suru Suru.”, series composition by Shigeru Murakoshi of “Zombie Land Saga,” and character design by Fumio Iida of “Basquash!”. Music is by Monaca of “NieR: Automata Ver1.1a,” and animation is by EMT Squared of “Shoot! Goal to the Future.”
The key visual shows Ruriko working as a beer girl, Murata on the back screen, the stadium mascot, and spectators. The full comments from Fairouz Ai, Inomata, and original author Suga are below. [Fairouz Ai (role of Ruriko)] I’m Fairouz Ai, and I’ll be playing the role of Ruriko! As a student, I was always fascinated by the stadium vendors and wanted to work part-time, so I’m thrilled to experience being a vendor in this work as a voice actor!
The characters are also unique, and the story is easy to understand, even for those new to baseball, so please look forward to it! [Inomata Keiji (role of Murata)] I’ll be playing the role of Murata this time! I’m Inomata Keiji! In “Catch Me at the Ballpark!”, the drama of various people, including spectators, stadium staff, and players, is depicted in a “baseball stadium.”
Through the story, you can learn about the work scenes of people working at the stadium, which you don’t usually get to see, which is not found in traditional baseball manga. It is an attractive work that is easy to read, even for people unfamiliar with baseball. When I first saw Murata, I thought he looked like an exasperated person (laughs). I thought he was a quiet person, but he was a character who showed more emotions than I expected, and he knew so much about baseball that he kept his data.
I love baseball, but I have studied the terminology again. I have tried to express Murata’s love for baseball and his flustered behavior when Ruriko teases him! I hope you will enjoy it! [Suga Tatsuro (original author)] When I heard that the anime would be made, I was so surprised that I felt the time had stopped. I was thrilled.
It’s rare for a work to be set in an entire professional baseball stadium, but I’m sure you will enjoy this world filled with many characters, including the beer girl Ruriko. I hope those who have read the original work and those who have watched the anime can get excited and make it the best “Ballpark.” Please look forward to the anime “Catch Me at the Ballpark!”!
