Rare Japanese high school phenom leaning toward SEC rival, but could Arkansas, Van Horn pull off big move?

It’s basically unheard of for a college baseball team, even in a storied league like the SEC, to find itself in the hunt for a Japanese high school baseball star. However, it’s possible Dave Van Horn and his Razorback staff might be doing exactly that.

ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel reported earlier today that Rintaro Sasaki, the greatest home run hitter in Japanese high school history, chose to not declare for the Nippon Professional Baseball draft and, will instead, look for an opportunity to play college baseball in America. Not only is he rare in his decision to pass up what many suspect was the chance to be the No. 1 pick in the NPB draft, but Sasaki is also in rarified air in size. His unprecedented power comes from his 6-foot, 250-pound frame.

That power has resulted in 140 home runs as a high school hitter and his metrics reportedly project out to a 30+ home runs at the Major League level. He is currently rated a third round pick if he were to enter the MLB draft.

At the moment, the Japanese press is reportedly listing Vanderbilt as the early frontrunner. Typically, because of the immense support for baseball in Arkansas, Van Horn can scrap together an NIL package that can easily compete with anything Vandy can generate. However, that may be a tool the Razorbacks can’t use.

Because of visa limitations, Sasaki wouldn’t be able to do work off campus that isn’t directly related to his academic studies. There are ways to get creative with that, but it’s risky when dealing with a foreign student’s good standing to be in the country.

However, that may change. Recent court rulings have taken a lot of the strings universities had tying them down under NCAA rules. If they continue to hold up, money will be able to filter directly through the university similar to how private scholarships work. If that ends up being the case, then it’s open season. There are also avenues for Sasaki complete NIL deal obligations while visiting back home in Japan.

As for now, no official visits have been announced, but there is little doubt Van Horn and his recruiting staff are brushing up on the difference between anime and manga and how to say yakyu-yo batto correctly. The home runs and publicity alone would be invaluable to the program, so every effort his staff can make will be worth it if the Hogs can do something they’ve struggled to do the last time the two programs faced each other – hold off the Commodores.