Shintaro Inoue's unorthodox journey from Japan to junior college to Kansas State

New York Times

29-05-2025

Shintaro Inoue left Japan and the seaside community of Yamaguchi, with its mountain views and hot springs, three years ago for the harsh plains of Western Nebraska.
All for an opportunity to advance in baseball.
Inoue's story is not akin to that of Rintaro Sasaki, the record-setting Japanese slugger whose father coached Shohei Ohtani in high school. The 20-year-old Sasaki bypassed a premier spot in Japan's NPB to sign with Stanford, where he's enjoyed modest success as a freshman this spring.
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Some six inches shorter than Sasaki and 60 pounds lighter, Inoue left Japan for the first time in 2022, and arrived in Scottsbluff, Neb. on the windswept eastern edge of the Rocky Mountain foothills, population 14,000.
With limited paths to progress in the sport he'd played since age 4, Inoue connected through a placement service with the coach at Western Nebraska Community College, Mike Jones.
Inoue shattered the school's career record with 28 home runs in two seasons before landing at Kansas State last fall. In his first year of Division I play, Inoue, 21, has thrived as the Wildcats' leadoff hitter and shortstop. He's hitting .283 with nine home runs and 30 RBIs, and he's the only regular in the Kansas State lineup with more walks (41) than strikeouts (39).
K-State enters the NCAA Tournament as a No. 3 seed in the Austin Regional. The Wildcats play UTSA on Friday at 7 p.m. (ET).
'He's a super talented defender,' Kansas State coach Pete Hughes said. 'He's got bat speed. And his baseball acumen is through the roof.'
Hughes lauded Inoue for his ability to conquer communication challenges. Upon his arrival in Manhattan, Kan., Inoue used an earbud connected to a translator box during team meetings and instructional sessions.
Within a few weeks, he set it aside. Teammates and coaches can communicate with Inoue via text message, which provides an instant translation. They rely on visual scouting reports. His English has improved dramatically.
In a recent 20-minute interview with The Athletic, he spoke entirely in English.
'He's highly skilled at making you believe that he knows what you're saying,' Hughes said.
Baseball has its own language, with few barriers.
'The rules of baseball don't change across languages much,' Wildcats associate head coach Austin Wates said. 'He's a smart baseball player.'
Inoue said he's adept at 'thinking baseball.' The basics of the game translate well from Japan to the United States. But the style Kansas State employs required him to adjust.
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The Wildcats play with an urgency that's new to Inoue, according to Hughes. The Kansas State coach demands aggressiveness from his players, but Inoue's nature is to avoid risks in the game.
They've worked to find a comfortable middle ground.
Inoue is deeply entrenched in a routine he established in his early years. He's talked at length with K-State teammate Maximus Martin, his best friend among the Wildcats, about the practice habits Inoue learned in his home country.
He took hundreds of swings per day and worked his arm at a rate that would alarm American coaches.
Aspects of his intricate routine remain. For example, at the same time on the clock before every game, Inoue places his thumbs on the horizon to help his eyes acclimate to the hitting background.
'He's probably the only guy on the team, the only person I've played with, who does the same thing every day,' Martin said. 'We all have our routines, but it's not every single day, every game. Some days you're just not feeling it.'
Inoue said he always feels it. Without the routine, nothing clicks.
'That's not my thing,' Hughes said, 'but we allow him to be himself within our program.'
Staying true to himself got Inoue here in the first place.
'The junior college road to Division I baseball is tough enough as it is for domestic kids, never mind someone from Japan,' Hughes said. 'I've never been to Western Nebraska Community College, but I've got to think it was an eye-opener for Shintaro.
'As a result, you've got a pretty resilient kid who can survive wherever you put him.'
Wates, the K-State assistant, discovered Inoue at a junior college showcase in Lawrence, Kan., after the 2023 season. The Wildcats' roster lists Inoue at 5 feet 8, but he's an inch or two shy of that.
Any concerns about his size disappeared when Wates watched the left-handed hitting Inoue drive a ball to left field off the wall at that first sighting.
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'He's short, but he's pretty well built,' Wates said. 'He has enough athleticism to do what he needs to do (to play middle infield). Not an elite athlete by any means, but he's got fast hands. So if you get away from the traditional wiry shortstop and you just evaluate the hands and the bat speed and the ability to barrel the ball, you get a really nice player.
'And that's what he's been.'
Inoue played 34 games this season at second base. The Wildcats moved Martin, who has made tentative plans to visit Japan this summer with Inoue, from shortstop to center field in mid-April. Inoue took over at shortstop.
Martin, a possible early-round pick in the 2025 MLB Draft in July, started his collegiate career at Rutgers. He transferred to Georgia State and then to K-State, where he's hitting .337 with 14 homers.
Even Martin is wowed by Inoue's skill at adjusting.
Before every inning, K-State shortstop Maximus Martin and Japanese second baseman Shintaro Inoue share a hug and bow together@caroline_soro asked Martin about the gesture:
"I know in Japan, when they play baseball, they usually bow before they step on the field…I'm just… pic.twitter.com/YuDiXtQSrR
— Landon Reinhardt (@landonian87) April 5, 2025
Jones, the Western Nebraska coach, said Inoue 'gives off nothing but a positive vibe every day.'
He hit a home run in an alumni exhibition game that traveled an estimated 485 feet.
'His time here was a joy,' Jones said. 'It was wonderful. It was a great experience for all of his teammates to have somebody give us a different perspective on the game.'
Inoue doesn't drive in the United States. He doesn't have an American phone number. When Wates attempted to bring Inoue to Manhattan for an official recruiting visit, the logistics didn't work. So, Inoue conducted a virtual visit.
'I think it actually was a blessing in disguise,' Wates said. 'His mom was on the call.'
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They used Google Translate to communicate on FaceTime.
At Kansas State, Inoue connected with a group of 10 to 15 Japanese students. He meets them routinely for meals. Some of the students have watched him play for the Wildcats.
'That's very helpful to me,' Inoue said.
Any little bit of home helps. He has communicated with former UC Irvine infielder Jo Oyama, a similarly statured Japanese player who took the juco-to-Division I route. When Inoue struggled early this season, he sought advice from Oyama.
The 24-year-old Oyama, who has played this year for an independent team in Canada, encouraged Inoue to keep doing what he's doing.
As always, stick with the routine.
Inoue said he modeled his game as a kid after Ichiro Suzuki. Similarities exist in their swings.
'It's handsy and whippy,' Hughes said. 'He's little, but he's got a strong lower half. He gets the power from whipping his hands. He can hit everything.'
Of late, Inoue has looked up to Masataka Yoshida, the 31-year-old Red Sox outfielder and designated hitter. He wants to play professionally — in the United States or at home in the NPB — after finishing up at Kansas State next season.
'I think I can do it,' Inoue said.
So do nearly all who've encountered him over the past three seasons.
(Top photo courtesy of Kansas State Athletics)