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Sanada Shunpei
Sanada03
Yakushi High School - No. 1
Pitcher, First baseman
Bats: right Throws: right
Kanji 真田 俊平
Nickname Nada-senpai (ナーダ先輩 Nāda-senpai)(by Raichi)

Super Sanada (張ナーダChō Nāda) (by Raichi)

Characteristics
Gender Male
Age 17 (debut)
18[1]
Date of birth 18 June
Place of birth Tokyo
Bloodtype AB
Height 181 cm (5' 11")
Weight 72 kg (158 lbs)
Status
Education 2nd Year High School (debut)

3rd Year High School (current)

Style Pitching Form (different from regular pitchers)
Skills Cutter

2-seam Fastball
Shuuto

First Appearance
Manga Act I - Chapter 92
Anime S1 - Episode 32
Cast
Voice Actor Kamiya Hiroshi
An ace that can't pitch the whole match from start to finish can't really be called ace.
Sanada in Distance to the Dream

Sanada Shunpei is a third year student of Yakushi High School. He is the ace of the Yakushi High School baseball team.

Appearance

Sanada has black hair and dark brown eyes that often appear black from a distance. He first wore jersey number 18, then number 1 after the Summer Tournament.

Character

Sanada is the ace pitcher who is the pride of Yakushi. At first, his attitude towards practice and baseball was anything but diligent, but after meeting Todoroki Raizou and Raichi he became fired up about high school baseball. He is a passionate pitcher who inspires his team with his strong pitching and batting and can instantly raise his team’s morale.

His teammates describe him as a cheerful and sociable person, but when he is on the mound there is a complete change of his expression and demeanor.[2] When he is not pitching, he swaps places with Mishima Yuuta and plays at first base.

History

Before the arrival of Todoroki Raizou and his son, Sanada saw baseball as something leisurely and a way to pass his time in high school. He never planned on taking high school baseball seriously. Sanada spent his days without a goal in mind and often skipped out on running and practices. After the arrival of the new coach, his ways didn't change for some time and he still skipped out on activities. With time, however, his and his teammates' viewpoint towards baseball changed. Sanada found a reason to give his all to baseball and began training more seriously.

However, due to his sudden increased effort and training regimen, his body was unable to keep up with him and Sanada suffered leg injuries. His stamina was also affected as well due to skipping practice so he was not capable enough for a starting role. This has rendered him unable to pitch a game from start to finish despite being the best pitcher on the team, frequently coming in as a relief pitcher despite being Yakushi's ace. But his relief plays a key role in Yakushi's success as he always kills off opponents' momentum and is able to turn the game in his team's favor with his presence. He remains committed to training and recovering his body fully so he can become a "true ace."

Act I

West Tokyo Tournament

Preliminaries

Sanada summer01
Sanada steps up to the mound.

Sanada pitched in Yakushi's match against Ichidaisan in the third round. He came on as a reliever and stopped Ichidaisan's momentum, which gave Yakushi the momentum and opportunity to turn the game around. They wound up winning 13-12. He pitched in relief in Yakushi's fourth round victory as well.

During their evening practice before the quarterfinals, Sanada speaks to Mishima, Akiba and Raichi and comments that it's funny how Raizou makes them watch Seidou's videos so diligently like they did with Ichidaisan.

Quarterfinals

On the day of the match and Yakushi behind by four runs, Sanada replaces starting pitcher Mino in the bottom of the third, changing the mood of the team. With one out, a runner on second, and Masuko at bat, Sanada is determined to stop Seidou's momentum but ends up hitting Masuko's elbow guard, putting a runner on first. Sanada isn't bothered the least, throwing right to Miyuki's face next, but Miyuki dodges. He jams Miyuki with a cutter and the inning ends with a double play. In the bottom of the fourth and fifth innings, he continues to hold his ground against Seidou's batters.[3]

Sanada summer02
An exhausted but calm Sanada.

In the bottom of the sixth, Yuuki hit a home run off him. His teammates begin to look concerned for him, but Sanada quickly dispels their worries with a grin and a few calm words. He manages to prevent Seidou from scoring more in the seventh inning. In the top of the eighth, at his turn to bat, Seidou sends Tanba to the mound. Sanada gets cornered with just two fastballs and despite Yakushi in scoring position, Tanba struck Sanada out with his curveball. In the bottom of the eighth, Sanada is exhausted and Seidou hits consecutive RBI's. Despite this, he remains calm closing out the inning with a double play.[4] At the top of the ninth, with the dark horse of the tournament failing to turn the game around, Yakushi loses in the quarterfinals.[5]

Aftermath

During their off season, Yakushi High has a scrimmage against Seidou High.[6] When they arrive at Seidou, they spot Sawamura and Furuya stretching on the field. Raichi jumps over while Sanada brags their consecutive wins.

For the game, Mishima is Yakushi's starting pitcher while Sanada plays first baseman. He is later sent to pitch in the seventh inning and goes three for three against Seidou's batters. During his at-bat the next inning, he hits Sawamura's pitch between right and center. Yakushi continues to expand their lead and wins the scrimmage. The team celebrates their twentieth consecutive win.[7]

Fall Tournament

Sanada attends the Fall Tournament drawings, and proudly shows their teams number: #41.

Third Round

In their match against Akikawa Academy, Shunshin manages to keep them scoreless until the eighth inning. At Raichi's at-bat in the eighth, Sanada is impressed with Shunshin for cornering Raichi. Raichi hits a homerun off Shunshin nonetheless, and it gave Yakushi the win. After the match, Sanada thinks of what might have happened had Shunshin chosen to walk Raichi instead.[8]

Semifinals

In their match against Ichidaisan High, Sanada plays first baseman while Akiba is the starting pitcher. He is soon sent to pitch in the third inning and prevents Ichidaisan from adding to their two runs. At top of the sixth, he hits Amahisa's fastball, but Yakushi couldn't score as Raichi attempted to run all the way to the plate and didn't make it. In the bottom of the inning, one out and runners on base, Sanada faces off against Ichidaisan's fourth batter, Hoshida. Hoshida manages to hit a a grounder but the ball bounces straight to Sanada's glove; Yakushi then pulls off a double play.[9]

The team prevents Ichidaisan yet again from scoring in the seventh and in the eighth inning. After Raichi strikes out swinging and Sanada sees the frustration on the freshman's face, Sanada has a recollection of how both Raizou and Raichi influenced him to train harder. After a few missed pitches, Sanada pulls off a 2-RBI hit seizing the lead from Ichidaisan. Ichidaisan was unable to turn the game around in the ninth, ultimately giving Yakushi the win.[10]

Act II

Spring Tournament

Sanada spring01
A leveled up Sanada pitches.

In the third round of the Spring Tournament, Yakushi High faces off against Inashiro Industrial. At the top of the first, displaying his polished pitching techniques, Sanada got Carlos, Shirakawa and Yabe out. After Narumiya strikes out Raichi in the bottom of the first, Sanada says how outstanding Narumiya is, surprising Raizou.

From the second inning on, Sanada continued to hold his own against Inashiro's lineup. At the top of the sixth however, Carlos hits a homerun off him,[11] Yamaoka following with a RBI.[12] Inashiro scores two more runs in the bottom of the eighth (Inashiro scored a third run with Yamaoka's double while Narumiya is walked on four balls, then Tadano hits another RBI). As Yakushi's team couldn't score off Narumiya in the last inning, they lost the game.

Behind the dugout, Sanada expresses his frustration over their loss saying that it's more frustrating now than their Koshien loss. Raizou thinks that Sanada's passive attitude towards baseball has changed as the pitcher is now more serious and feels the frustration that comes with each game lost.[13]

Relationships with other characters

Todoroki Raichi

Raichi has respect for Sanada and calls him "Sanada-senpai." Raichi also often calls out (unnecessary) words of encouragement to Sanada during games.

Todoroki Raizou

Sanada respects Raizou and the two seem to have an amicable coach-player relationship. Raizou truly appreciates Sanada's steady and calming presence as ace on the team and has expressed more than once that he wishes Sanada were his son.

Skills

Unlike Sawamura's moving fastball, he's actually controlling where the ball moves.
Takigawa Chris Yuu on Sanada's pitching

Pitching: Sanada is an offensive pitching-to-contact type pitcher who throws aggressively to the inside with a pitch speed over 140 km/h. His pitching can be quite intimidating and he seems unafraid of actually hitting the batter.[3][14] He mainly utilizes his sharp shuuto for right-handed batters and his cut fastball for lefties. His breaking fastballs are very effective at jamming batters and inducing ground balls, allowing Yakushi to easily score double plays and get out of pinch situations. Later in his third year, Sanada started adopting a new pitching position where he stands closer to first base, allowing him to specifically improve the power and angle of his shuuto.[15] This also makes batters overly wary of the inside corners and gives Sanada the opportunity to go for strikes on the outside part of the zone, a tactic he has been successfully using since the Spring Senbatsu.[15]

His weaknesses include his lack of stamina, which makes him unable to pitch a full game. He has worked hard during the off-season to improve his stamina and build up muscles. In his third year, his training paid off and he has become able to pitch a full game against Inajitsu during the Spring Tournament despite the fact that Yakushi ended up losing that game. His other weakness is that he never checks for steals and gets too focus on the batter, thus giving away stolen bases late in games.

Batting: He performs well in the clutch as a useful hitter. He's especially strong against fastballs, often only targeting them when he bats unless he is instructed to go swinging for breaking pitches (such as against Kawakami Norifumi during the Fall Tournament finals). He is the team's fifth batter.

Pitcher’s data

This data is based on the official guidebook, it will only be changed if there is an official update!

Pitcher's data

Note that just because a character said something about another characters improvements is not considered an official update!
You are free to write about the characters improvements in the Skills section above!

Speed
 
3/5
Control
 
4/5
Stamina
 
3/5
Shuuto
 
3/5
Cutter
 
5/5
Two-seam
 
4/5

Player Statistics

This data is based on the official guidebook, it will only be changed if there is an official update!

Player Statistics

Note that just because a character said something about another characters improvements is not considered an official update!
You are free to write about the characters improvements in the Skills section above!

Defense
 
5/5
Shoulder
 
3/5
Running
 
3/5
Physical Strength
 
2/5
Mental Strength
 
5/5
Batting
 
4/5
Contact
 
4/5
Power
 
3/5

Trivia

  • Sanada respects Todoroki Raizou and Todoroki Raichi. [2]
  • He also enjoys music, particularly hip hop, and playing World Soccer Winning Eleven, a sports video game. [2]
  • During the 89th West Tokyo summer tournament, he wore jersey No. 18.
  • In Raichi's Batman under the Bridge, Sanada throws left.
  • Rankings from the guidebook: [2]
    • First when it comes to having the best 'guts' on the mound.
    • Ranks second in fighting strength (right behind Yuuki Tetsuya, also the only one not being fourth batter in rank).
    • Fourth in terms of the 'best break' of breaking balls.
  • Favorite food: Pasta [2]
  • Best subject: Science [2]
  • Hobby/Special Skill: Cooking; he specializes in Western-style cuisine. [2]

Name Etymology

  • Sanada (真田) - Braid; True Field
  • Shunpei (俊平) - Smart/Rapid Boy

Quotes

  • "I'm planning to cause even more problems for you from now on. Please forgive me when that happens!"
  • "I won't lose to some first year!" - about Sawamura
  • "He's a cheerful and sociable person. And yet when he is on the mound... Anyway he is a reliable senpai." - Akiba [2]

Gallery


References

  1. Act II - Chapter 135
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Official Guide Book - Omote
  3. 3.0 3.1 S1 - Episode 36
  4. S1 - Episode 39
  5. S1 - Episode 40
  6. S1 - Episode 67
  7. S1 - Episode 70
  8. S1 - Episode 19
  9. S2 - Episode 37
  10. S2 - Episode 38
  11. Act II - Chapter 18
  12. Act II - Chapter 19
  13. Act II - Chapter 20
  14. Act II - Chapter 16
  15. 15.0 15.1 Act II - Chapter 16

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