Kara Dennison
June 16, 2025 
With both Super Psychic Policeman Chojo and Syd Craft: Love Is a Mystery bowing out of Shonen Jump, the time has come for some new series. This week, a new sports manga joins the brawl: Harukaze Mound, an adaptation of the 2022 one-shot by Togo Goto and Kento Matsuura. The story follows twin brothers as they pursue their baseball dreams together. But how far will those dreams go? Will this series thrive or fall? Join us for a first look at the first chapter!
The Story
Harukaze Mound centers on twin brothers Nagiharu and Aokaze, both of whom have big baseball dreams. But now that they’re in high school, only one of them is following through. Despite the fact that both brothers have identical perfect pitching form, only younger brother Aokaze is getting recognition. He’s an in-demand player, while southpaw Nagiharu is a veteran benchwarmer.
But just as it’s beginning to look like Aokaze will heave Nagiharu in the dust, the twins meet a catcher with some wild ideas. With his help, Nagiharu discovers that success will require something he never considered: being different. And once he finds his own pitching style, his talent starts to shine through!
Baseball Legacy
Long-time fans of baseball manga and anime may see some familiar themes in Harukaze Mound. In particular, there’s the idea of twins both vying for baseball greatness. In many ways, this feels like a throwback to the 1981 manga Touch. Penned by Mitsuru Adachi, this series kicked off following twin brothers Kazuya and Tatsuya Uesugi. As with the Kuzumi twins, the elder Uesugi brother has talent, but the younger brother is the one succeeding. But in the case of Touch, that’s down to a lack of motivation.
Fans of Touch or its anime adaptation will know that a certain event finally gets Tatsuya to start working hard toward his own baseball goals. Fortunately, that impetus is not present in the first chapter of this new series. It’s less about being shocked into motion and more about finding one’s own style. And this twist on an old formula could elevate this new series.
Find Your Own Way
You don’t have to know a lot about baseball to enjoy Harukaze Mound, but it certainly doesn’t hurt. That said, the hook of the first chapter is something any reader can appreciate: the idea that bodies are not perfectly symmetrical. This may seem like a random point—but remember that Aokaze and Nagiharu pitch with different hands. Take that into consideration, and suddenly Nagiharu’s failures thus far start to make sense.
Combined with Kento Matsuura’s slick and action-packed art, this story has a lot of promise. Only time will tell whether it will survive in Shonen Jump where recent sports titles like Martial Master Asumi and Green Green Greens have fallen. But we’re rooting for the Kuzumi twins to have as long a run as possible!
Harukaze Mound is now available on the Shonen Jump app.
