I feel like it is truly hard to appreciate One Outs as a story if you don't go in mostly blind. Everything from the characters to the overall pacing of time and events in the story is so well done that at the point of writing this review, this has become one of my favorite sports stories of all time. This manga truly goes in directions you will not expect, and turns tired tropes you see in most typical sports shonen esque manga on their head in the best kind of way. I do not wish to go into detail but as an example I will use Eyeshield 101.

Both use main characters who rely on crazy strategies to defeat what appear to be a single overpowered MVP player or a group of 2 or 3 incredibly strong players. But while the strategies in Eyeshield 101 feel ridiculous due to the flow of time for each play while requiring absolutely perfect timing and reliance of players who appear to have superpowers. One Outs relies on mind games, deduction, and sometimes simple tricks that, while occasionally appearing to be ridiculous, all have a semblance of foundation in reality. The "overpowered" rivals simply resemble the best of real world baseball, and the mc's team have the own strengths of real people which gradually improve rather than taking the form of weird quirks. What comes from all of this is a much more gratifying and enjoyable experience, one which truly focuses on the journey rather than the destination. I would recommend this manga for almost anyone.