Archived Weblog Entry - 12/13/2002: "Japanese Baseball News: Is Matsui the New $6 Million Man?"

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12/13/2002 Archived Entry: "Japanese Baseball News: Is Matsui the New $6 Million Man?"

Matsui Opens Negotiations With Yankees and Mets

According to Sports Nippon, the New York Mets have received a $6 million salary demand from Yomiuri Giants free agent outfielder Hideki Matsui, a figure that paper has called "cheap." Mets owner Fred Wilpon accompanied GM Steve Phillips to the negotiations. Sources quoted in the Mets camp say that they were not surprised by the figure Matsui aganet Arn Tellem brought with him. The Sports Nippon report also referred to a Newark Star-Ledger report that asserted that Godzilla was hoping for 3-4 years at between $5-6 million per season.

Sports Nippon also brought up a comparison with what other MLB players are being paid. For example, Chicago Cubs leftfielder Moises Alou earned about $6 million this past season. Manny Ramirez, Barry Bonds, et al are over $15 million per campaign.

The Yankees met secretly with Tellem on the 11th, though there aren't any details of how that went and there is a cone of silence imposed in the Bronx about Matsui. However, Nikkan Sports is saying that George Steinbrenner doesn't want to get bogged down in a bidding war (hey you! Stop that snickering!) for him. The Yankees are reported to be negotiating with Cliff Floyd as an insurance measure if Matsui goes somewhere else.

Nakamura Continues to Vacillate

According to Sankei Sports, while Kintetsu Buffaloes free agent third baseman Norihiro Nakamura was playing in a charity golf event in Nara today, he told reporters that he is withdrawing a statement he made yesterday indicating that he would decide which Japanese team he would go to on the 17th if he ultimately chose to remain in Japan.

Hanshin manager Senichi Hoshino, when apprised of this, once again expressed his dissatisfaction with Nakamura's leisurely approach to deciding with whom he will play next season: "this is like what [So] Taguchi did to us last year," the fiery field boss sputtered, leaving the impression that Hanshn has been left twisting in the wind while Nakamura flirts with MLB.

Lotte to Acquire Versatile PCL Batting Champ Short

According to Nikkan Sports, the Chiba Lotte Marines are set to pickup 2002 Pacific Coast League batting champ Rick Short, who plays with the Anaheim Angels affiliate at Salt Lake City. Manager Koji Yamamoto will personally handle the negotiations for the third baseman who can also play short, second and some outfield.

The righthand hitting Short, who was originally drafted by Baltimore in 1994 on the 33rd round, used his ability to spray the ball around to bat .356 this past season. He is 5'11" and 188 pounds.

In other foreign player news, Devil Rays infielder Andy Sheets has been sold to the Hiroshima Carp. Sheets batted .248 this past season with four homers and 22 RBIs in 41 games.

Dragons May Send Yamasaki to Orix

According to Nikkan Sports, the Chunichi Dragons and the Orix Blue Wave are working on a trade that would send first baseman/outfielder Takeshi Yamasaki, 34, to Kobe for infielder Hiroki Fukutome, 27, and some cash. Yamasaki won a homer title in 1996 with 39, but slumped this season and was demoted to the minors. Now he no longer fits into the team's plans and so they want to offload him.

Fukutome is a little bit of a historical oddity, as he homered on the first pitch he ever saw on the big club level in 1997 to become just the fifth man in Japanese history to do that. Otherwise, coming into 2002, he was a .176 career hitter in 215 lifetime at bats. He got into 32 games this time around and batted .222.

Hot Shots....

Contrary to a report in USA Today, former Cleveland Indians manager Chuck Manuel is NOT going to manage in Japan, as there are no openings right now. However, one could see him perhaps being taken on as a batting coach for a club's foreign players ala Leon Lee....It appears that the NY Post is attempting to stoke a bidding war between the Mets and Yankees for Hideki Matsui. However, an article in the same issue by Joel Sherman seems to show the Yankees as being indecisive and incohesive on their player personnel matters. And personally, it's hard to believe that they would be interested in a washed up Todd Zeile....Hanshin Tigers first baseman/outfielder Katsumi Hirosawa was victimized by a $64,000 salay cut to around $335,000....Daiei Hawks pitcher Keisaburo Tanoue kissed off $160,000 and will make $650,000 in 2003. Outfielder Arihito Muramatsu also had his bottom line go a little redder and he reacted by blaming a hanstring injury he suffered during the season on the team trainer's incompetence.... Yomiuri Giants manager Tatsunori Hara said that he will allow Roberto Petagine to decide his own workout schedule and will bat him fifth behind new cleanup man Kazuhiro Kiyohara....And while we're on the subject of the kyojin, former Giants hurler Minoru Shindo will play with Shidax in the Japanese industrial league next season. He is the older brother of Lions draftee Chikara Onodera.... Seibu Lions shortstop Kazuo Matsui is in Hawaii right now with wife Mio and daughter Haruna.... Lions leftfielder Kazuhiro Wada got himself an eye popping $480,000 boost to $800,000 after a career year in which he slugged 33 homers while pitcher Takashi Ishii will make the same he did last season....Hiroshima Carp infielder Kenjiro Nomura had his salary slashed by $160,000 to $1.2 million. Catcher Shuji Nishiyama also absorbed a decline to the tune of $80,000 to $560,000. But they did provide an improved financial picture to closer Yasuhiro Oyamada by about $170,000 to approximately $270,000....the Chicago media is saying that the Cubs may scoop up Tsuyoshi Shinjo.... Dodgers lefthander Kazuhisa Ishii played gold earlier today with his former Yakult Swallows teammates in Atsugi, Kanagawa Prefecture told the Swallows number one draft choice, Yuhei Takai, to make it with the big club as soon as possible so that he can get good enough to accomplish his dream of playing in MLB one day. Ishii also remarked that he needs to keep his pride and confidence intact to be successful. When he was briefed about this, Takai commented, "he's somebody who is way higher than I am, so I'm happy to hear that. I don't think anyone can beat me, but I don't want to get overconfident, either."

Nakamura to Cut One Team

See story at: Japan Times Article

Mets Officially Join the Matsui Hunt

See story at: New Jersey Star-Ledger Article

Giambi to Matsui: "Just Worry About Hitting .300"

See story at: Stamford Advocate Article

Mets Interested in Japanese Stars

See story at: NY Times Article

Taiwan Leagues Merger Talks Progressing

See story at: Taipei Times Article

More on Sasaki Goodwill Ambassadorship

See story at: Japan Times Article