Kazuo Matsui facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Kazuo Matsui松井 稼頭央 |
||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Matsui with the Saitama Seibu Lions in 2018
|
||||||||||||||
| Infielder / Outfielder / Coach / Manager | ||||||||||||||
| Born: October 23, 1975 Higashiōsaka, Osaka, Japan |
||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
| Professional debut | ||||||||||||||
| NPB: April 5, 1995, for the Seibu Lions | ||||||||||||||
| MLB: April 6, 2004, for the New York Mets | ||||||||||||||
| Last appearance | ||||||||||||||
| MLB: May 18, 2010, for the Houston Astros | ||||||||||||||
| NPB: October 6, 2018, for the Saitama Seibu Lions | ||||||||||||||
| NPB statistics | ||||||||||||||
| Batting average | .291 | |||||||||||||
| Hits | 2,090 | |||||||||||||
| Home runs | 201 | |||||||||||||
| Runs batted in | 837 | |||||||||||||
| Stolen bases | 363 | |||||||||||||
| MLB statistics | ||||||||||||||
| Batting average | .267 | |||||||||||||
| Hits | 615 | |||||||||||||
| Home runs | 32 | |||||||||||||
| Runs batted in | 211 | |||||||||||||
| Stolen bases | 102 | |||||||||||||
| Teams | ||||||||||||||
As player
As coach
As Manager
|
||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
|
Medals
|
||||||||||||||
Kazuo Matsui (born October 23, 1975) is a famous Japanese former professional baseball player. He played as a shortstop and later became a manager for the Saitama Seibu Lions. Matsui is a switch-hitter, meaning he can bat both left-handed and right-handed.
He made history on December 17, 2003, when he signed with the New York Mets. This made him the first Japanese infielder to join a Major League Baseball (MLB) team.
Contents
Early Life and High School Baseball
Kazuo Matsui went to PL Academy Senior High School in Osaka, Japan. This school was very well-known for its baseball team. Matsui was considered a top pitcher for his school.
He only played in the National High School Baseball Championship Tournament once. This was during his second year at PL Academy. Even though he was a star pitcher, injuries limited his playing time.
Professional Baseball Career
Starting in Japan: Seibu Lions
In 1994, the Seibu Lions picked Matsui third overall in the Japanese League Draft. He quickly became a regular player at shortstop by 1996. That year, he was second in the league with 50 stolen bases.
In 1997, Matsui had a great season. He hit for a .300 average for the first time. He also led the league in stolen bases with 62. His team, the Seibu Lions, won the Pacific League Title. During the 1997 All-Star Game, he set a new record by stealing four bases. He was even named the game's Most Valuable Player (MVP). Matsui led the Pacific League in stolen bases for three years in a row.
Before moving to MLB, Matsui played only for the Seibu Lions from 1995 to 2003. He won the Best Nine Award seven times in a row (1997–2003). One of his best years was 2002. He hit .332 with 36 home runs and 87 RBI. He also won four Gold Glove awards in Japan. In 1998, he was named the Nippon Professional Baseball MVP. Even though his team won the Pacific League Title four times, they never won the Japan Series.
Moving to America: New York Mets
Matsui joined the New York Mets in 2004. He did something amazing by hitting a home run in his very first plate appearance in 2004, 2005, and 2006. He is the only MLB player to hit a home run in his first plate appearance for his first three seasons.
In 2004, Matsui played 114 games. He had 125 hits, 32 doubles, and 7 home runs. He also stole 14 bases.
People expected Matsui to be a great defensive shortstop for the Mets. However, he made many errors in 2004. Because of this, he moved to second base in 2005. He also had some injuries, which he didn't have in Japan. His hitting was not as strong as expected either. By mid-2005, he was not playing every day.
Playing for the Colorado Rockies
On June 9, 2006, Matsui was traded to the Colorado Rockies. He first played for their minor league team before joining the Rockies in August. With the Rockies, Matsui's hitting improved a lot. He went from hitting .200 with the Mets to .345 with the Rockies in 2006.
Matsui signed again with the Rockies for the 2007 season. He changed his jersey number back to 7, which he wore in Japan. His performance continued to get better. He hit .288 and had career highs in runs (84) and stolen bases (32).
In 2007, Matsui and the Rockies made it to the playoffs. He hit his first career grand slam in the playoffs against the Philadelphia Phillies. This was a huge moment, as it gave the Rockies the lead. He became only the third player in MLB history to hit his first grand slam in the postseason. He also became the first Japanese player to do so. In the 2007 World Series, the Rockies lost in four games. This was Matsui's only time playing in the MLB playoffs.
Time with the Houston Astros
On December 1, 2007, Matsui signed a three-year deal with the Houston Astros. He missed the start of the 2008 season due to surgery. When he returned, he hit .293 and stole 20 bases.
Matsui continued to deal with injuries but kept his starting position at second base. He reached a big milestone by getting over 2,000 hits in his career, combining his time in Japan and MLB. In 2009, he was a top second baseman for his defense. The Astros released Matsui on May 19, 2010.
Return to Japan
After leaving the Astros, Matsui signed a minor league deal with the Colorado Rockies again. He stayed in their minor league system for the rest of 2010.
After the 2010 season, Matsui returned to Japan. He signed with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). In 2013, Matsui and the Eagles won the Japan Series.
On November 17, 2017, Matsui signed with the Saitama Seibu Lions, the team he started his career with. He announced his retirement from playing baseball on September 27, 2018, at the end of that season.
Coaching and Managing Career
After retiring as a player, Kazuo Matsui became a coach for the Saitama Seibu Lions. He coached from 2018 to 2022.
On October 13, 2022, Matsui was hired as the manager for the Saitama Seibu Lions. He managed the team in 2023 and 2024.
International Play
Matsui also played for the Japan national baseball team. He was part of the team for the 2003 Asian Baseball Championship and the 2013 World Baseball Classic.
See also
- Home run in first Major League at-bat
