Hideki Matsui facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Hideki Matsui |
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Matsui with the New York Yankees in 2007
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| Outfielder / Designated hitter | |||
| Born: June 12, 1974 Neagari, Ishikawa, Japan |
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| Professional debut | |||
| NPB: May 1, 1993, for the Yomiuri Giants | |||
| MLB: March 31, 2003, for the New York Yankees | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| NPB: October 30, 2002, for the Yomiuri Giants | |||
| MLB: July 22, 2012, for the Tampa Bay Rays | |||
| NPB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .304 | ||
| Home runs | 332 | ||
| Runs batted in | 889 | ||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .282 | ||
| Home runs | 175 | ||
| Runs batted in | 760 | ||
| Teams | |||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
NPB
MLB
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 Baseball Hall of Fame |
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| Induction | 2018 | ||
| Vote | 91.3% | ||
| Hideki Matsui | |||||
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| Japanese name | |||||
| Kanji | 松井 秀喜 | ||||
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Hideki Matsui (松井 秀喜, Matsui Hideki, born June 12, 1974), often called "Godzilla", is a famous Japanese former professional baseball player. He played as an outfielder and designated hitter. Matsui played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for teams like the New York Yankees and also in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Yomiuri Giants in Japan. He was a left-handed batter and threw with his right hand.
Matsui spent the first 10 years of his career playing in Japan for the Yomiuri Giants. During this time, he was chosen as an All-Star nine times. He also helped his team win the Japan Series three times and was named the Central League Most Valuable Player (MVP) three times. In 2003, Matsui moved to North America to play in MLB. He played his first seven seasons there with the New York Yankees. As a Yankee, he was a two-time All-Star and won the 2009 World Series. He was even named the World Series MVP for his amazing performance. He is the only player from Asia to win this award in MLB history. After leaving the Yankees, Matsui played one year each for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Oakland Athletics, and Tampa Bay Rays. On July 28, 2013, Matsui signed a special one-day contract with the Yankees to officially retire as a member of their team.
During his 20 years playing baseball, Matsui hit a total of 507 home runs. He hit 332 in Japan and 175 in MLB. In 2018, Matsui was honored by being inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame.
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Early Life and Baseball Start
Hideki Matsui was born in Neagari, Ishikawa, Japan. This town later became part of Nomi, Ishikawa. When he was a child, Matsui first batted right-handed. But when he played with his older brother and his friends, Matsui was so good that his brother asked him to bat left-handed or stop playing. Matsui quickly became a very strong left-handed batter and continued to bat that way.
Matsui went to Seiryo High School in Kanazawa, Ishikawa. This school was known for its strong baseball team. During his high school years, Matsui played in four National High School Baseball Tournaments at Koshien Stadium. In 1992, he received five intentional walks in a row during a game at Koshien. This made him a big topic of conversation across Japan. The intentional walks were seen as unfair, but the strategy worked, and Matsui's team lost. People praised Matsui for staying calm and not showing much emotion during those moments.
Professional Baseball Career
Playing for the Yomiuri Giants
After high school, the Yomiuri Giants baseball team chose Matsui in the first round of their draft. They gave him the uniform number 55. This number was special because it was the same number as the single-season home run record held by the legendary player Sadaharu Oh.
Matsui's first three seasons were not very special. But in 1996, he had a breakout year. He hit for a .314 average with 38 home runs and 99 RBIs. Matsui was named the MVP three times in Japan's Central League (1996, 2000, and 2002). He led his team to play in four Japan Series championships, winning three of them (1994, 2000, and 2002). He also played in nine All-Star games in a row. Matsui led the league in home runs and RBIs three times (1998, 2000, and 2002). In 2002, his last season in Japan, he hit 50 home runs, which was his highest in a single season.
In his ten seasons in Japan, Matsui played 1268 games. He had 332 home runs and 889 RBIs, with a .304 batting average. He also had a streak of playing 1,250 games in a row, which was the second longest in Japan.
Matsui became known as "Godzilla" in Japan. This nickname started because of some skin problems he had early in his career. But it soon came to mean his powerful hitting. In 2002, he even had a small role in the movie Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla.
Joining the New York Yankees
On December 19, 2002, Matsui signed a three-year contract worth $21 million with the New York Yankees. A parade was held for him in Tokyo to celebrate him joining the Yankees. Many reporters followed him from Japan to MLB.
On March 31, 2003, Matsui played his first MLB game against the Toronto Blue Jays in Canada. He was the first Japanese player to make his MLB debut in Canada. He hit an RBI single in his very first MLB at-bat. At the Yankees' home opener in 2003, he became the first Yankee to hit a grand slam in his first game at Yankee Stadium. Matsui finished that season with a .287 batting average, 16 home runs, and 106 RBIs. In the 2003 MLB postseason, he became the first Japanese player to hit a home run in the World Series. This happened in Game Two of the 2003 World Series against the Florida Marlins.
In his second season, Matsui had a .298 average with 31 home runs and 108 RBIs in 2004. He was chosen as an American League All-Star that year. In 2005, Matsui had his best MLB season with a .305 average and 116 RBIs.
On November 15, 2005, Matsui signed a new four-year deal for $52 million. This made him the highest-paid Japanese player in baseball at that time. This contract kept him with the Yankees until 2009. In 2006, Matsui played only part of the season due to a wrist injury. He finished with a .302 average, eight home runs, and 29 RBIs.
On May 6, 2007, Matsui got his 2,000th hit when combining his hits from Japan and MLB. This earned him a spot in Japan's Golden Players Club. This club is for players who have reached 2,000 hits, 200 wins, or 250 saves professionally. On August 5, 2007, Matsui became the first Japanese player in MLB history to hit 100 home runs. This home run was hit against Gil Meche of the Kansas City Royals.
On June 12, 2008, Matsui hit a grand slam on his 34th birthday. This helped the Yankees win 4–1 against the A's. Later that month, Matsui had knee pain and was placed on the disabled list. He returned on August 19 and became the team's everyday designated hitter. After the last game at Yankee Stadium, Matsui had surgery on his left knee.
On June 12, 2009, Matsui hit a three-run home run on his 35th birthday. This gave the Yankees a 7–6 lead over the New York Mets. On July 20, he hit a walk-off solo home run in the bottom of the ninth inning against Jim Johnson of the Baltimore Orioles. This gave the Yankees their fourth win in a row and tied them for first place in their division. A month later, on August 21, Matsui hit two home runs and had a career-high seven RBIs in the Yankees' 20–11 win over the Boston Red Sox. He was the first Yankees player to have seven RBIs in a game at Fenway Park since Lou Gehrig in 1930.
In the 2009 World Series, Matsui helped the Yankees beat the Philadelphia Phillies in six games. He hit very well, with a .615 batting average, three home runs, and 8 RBIs. In Game 6, he tied a World Series record with six RBIs in a single game. Because the designated hitter position was not used in games played in Philadelphia, Matsui only started the three games in New York. Even so, his great performance earned him the World Series Most Valuable Player Award. He was the first Japanese-born player to win this award. He was also the first player to win it as a full-time designated hitter in the World Series.
Playing for Other MLB Teams
On December 16, 2009, Matsui agreed to a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for $6.5 million. He said he "loved the Yankees the best" but felt they no longer valued him. He quickly decided to sign with the Angels because he felt they had "high expectations" for him.
On Opening Day of the 2010 season, Matsui hit a home run. He played in 145 games for the Angels, hitting for a .274 average with 21 home runs and 84 RBIs. After the season, Matsui became a free agent again.
On December 14, 2010, Matsui signed a one-year contract with the Oakland Athletics for the 2011 season. On April 3, 2011, Matsui got his 2,500th career hit (combining hits from Japan and MLB). On July 20, 2011, Matsui hit his 500th career home run.
On April 30, 2012, Matsui signed a minor league contract with the Tampa Bay Rays. He joined their Triple-A team, the Durham Bulls, on May 15, 2012. On May 28, 2012, the Rays called Matsui up to play in a game against the Chicago White Sox. When he joined the Rays, he chose to wear uniform number 35 because his favorite number 55 was already taken. In his second at-bat for the Rays on May 29, 2012, Matsui hit a two-run home run.
Matsui's hitting was not as strong during the next two months. He was released by the Rays on August 1, 2012. By playing for the Rays, Matsui became the first player in history to play 10 top-level professional seasons in both America (MLB) and Japan (NPB).
Playing Streak Record
Matsui did not miss a single game in his first three seasons with the Yankees. This created a streak of 518 games played. Before that, he played in 1,250 consecutive games with the Yomiuri Giants. This means he had a total professional baseball streak of 1,768 games. Matsui holds the record for the longest streak of consecutive games played to start an MLB career.
On May 11, 2006, in his 519th game with the Yankees, Matsui broke his left wrist while trying to make a sliding catch. Even with the injury, Matsui threw the ball back to the infield before grabbing his wrist in pain. This game did not count toward his streak because a player must play for at least half an inning or have an at-bat to be credited with a game played. Matsui had surgery on May 12, 2006. He returned to the Yankees' starting lineup on September 12 and had a great return, going 4 for 4 with a walk and scoring twice.
Retirement and Hall of Fame
On December 27, 2012, Matsui officially announced that he was retiring from baseball. His retirement ceremony was held on May 5, 2013, at the Tokyo Dome. During this event, the Japanese government gave him and Shigeo Nagashima the People's Honour Award.
On July 28, 2013, Matsui signed a special one-day contract with the New York Yankees. This allowed him to formally retire as a member of the team, which was his wish. In 2015, Matsui rejoined the Yankees as a special adviser to their general manager, Brian Cashman.
On January 15, 2018, Matsui was elected to the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame with 91.3% of the votes. He was 43 years old when he was elected, making him the youngest player to be inducted into the Hall. He broke the record previously held by Hideo Nomo.
Matsui was one of the people who carried the torch for the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Charity Work
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Matsui has done a lot of charity work. He donated $500,000 to help victims of the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
Matsui also donated $620,000 to help people affected by the 2011 earthquake, tsunami, and the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan. On March 21, 2015, Matsui and his former teammate Derek Jeter held a baseball charity event. This event was to support children affected by the 2011 disaster. It included a baseball clinic and a home run derby between Matsui and Jeter.
Personal Life
Matsui announced on March 27, 2008, that he had gotten married in a private ceremony in New York. His wife's name was not shared publicly. They met in Japan after the 2006 baseball season. Matsui's first son was born in the United States around the time Matsui retired from baseball. As of November 2016, Matsui had an apartment in Manhattan and a home in Connecticut where he was raising his son. In January 2017, his wife gave birth to their second son. He continues to live in New York City.
See also
In Spanish: Hideki Matsui para niños
- List of Major League Baseball players from Japan
- History of baseball outside the United States
