Osamu Akaishi

Akaishi is intimidating in appearance but grows into a restrained and loyal friend. As a child he has a reputation as one of the strongest boys around and can be jealous of Kou because of Wakaba's affection for him.

His temperament becomes markedly steadier with age. He is willing to fight if necessary but increasingly prefers preventing his friends from getting into trouble. With Daiki Nakanishi, in particular, Akaishi often acts as the person capable of stopping an argument from becoming physical.

Akaishi is also observant and tactically intelligent. Kou trusts his judgment behind the plate, and he becomes an important organizer within Seishuu's team rather than simply a receiver for its pitchers.

Akaishi throws and bats right-handed. As an elementary-school player he can throw a fastball around 100 km/h, although Kou is already capable of hitting one of those pitches for a home run.

He eventually switches from pitcher to catcher and develops into an excellent defensive partner for Kou. His physical strength and catching ability make him one of the few people capable of comfortably receiving Aoba's full-power pitches.

Akaishi is also a useful hitter. He moves from seventh in the prefab batting order to fifth for Seishuu's regular varsity and wears the catcher's number 2. His understanding of opposing hitters and pitchers makes his game-calling an important part of Kou's success.

Akaishi begins as both Kou's childhood rival for Wakaba's attention and one of the boys playing baseball around the neighborhood. His path changes fundamentally because of a dream Wakaba describes involving Koshien.

After Wakaba dies, Akaishi changes to catcher so that he can pursue the dream in which Kou pitches to him before a packed Koshien crowd. The private goal becomes one of the strongest motivations behind his baseball career.

In high school, he refuses Daimon's placement test and joins Kou and Nakanishi on Maeno's prefab squad. He helps analyze the favored varsity and plays a major tactical role in challenging Daimon's system. After the teams are unified, Akaishi becomes Seishuu's captain and starting catcher, eventually reaching the Koshien qualification Wakaba had imagined.

Kou Kitamura is Akaishi's childhood friend, pitcher and long-term battery partner. Their childhood rivalry over Wakaba eventually gives way to deep trust, and Osamu Akaishi becomes one of the people who understands Kou Kitamura's pitching best.

Wakaba Tsukishima is Akaishi's childhood crush. He is jealous of her attachment to Kou, but her death and her Koshien dream become defining motivations behind his decision to become a catcher.

Aoba Tsukishima is another pitcher whose full-strength throws Akaishi can handle. His familiarity with Aoba Tsukishima's pitching also helps him understand how Kou develops.

Daiki Nakanishi is a longtime friend and teammate. Akaishi often acts as the stabilizing presence when Daiki Nakanishi's temper threatens to cause trouble.

Akane Takigawa strongly resembles Wakaba and becomes increasingly important to Akaishi. His feelings gradually shift from the shock of that resemblance toward genuine affection for Akane herself.