Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
December 08, 2003
Two Matsui Town

It's being reported that Kaz Matsui has agreed to sign with the Mets. It's not a done deal, as Matsui has to undergo a physical, but things are looking up in Queens.


In nine years with the Seibu Lions of the Pacific League, Matsui batted over .300 seven times, ripped at least 20 homers four times and won a quartet of Gold Gloves. He also possesses blazing speed (Ichiro Suzuki swears Matsui's faster than he is) and is extremely durable (he's played in 1,143 consecutive games).

Matsui's announcement also officially shifts Jose Reyes to second base, a move that some skeptics have questioned. The move is indeed a risk, but it also gives the Mets the potential to sport the game's most athletic and dynamic double-play combination. The duo also will be linked at the top of the lineup, giving the club back-to-back switch-hitting speedsters.


Of course, it would be better if in addition to their speed, both got on base. I think Kaz will do alright, but Reyes needs to do much better than he did in 2003. Still, defense up the middle should be better, and that will help Glavine. I also wonder if a rivalry will develop between Hideki and Kaz, where they push each other to be the top Matsui.

Update: the raindrops doesn't like the deal at all.


Posted by David Pinto at 01:31 PM | Free Agents | TrackBack (2)
Comments

Why move Reyes? He's going to be a very good SS. Why not use Matsui's contract and work on the outfield? This is an odd odd move and the Mets continue to take a step forward, a step sideways, and a step backwards. What gives?

Posted by: Jayho at December 8, 2003 03:23 PM

I gotta wonder how hard the Dodgers were able to try to get Matsui, given the ownership flux. Granted I'm a Dodgers fan, but there's a large Japanese population in LA which would probably have taken Matsui to heart, and they've already got two other native Japanese speakers on the team.

Posted by: Linkmeister at December 8, 2003 06:01 PM

Don't be too quick to judge Reyes. He improved dramatically as his playing time increased...his OBP went from .211 with 1 walk in June, to .340 with 2 walks in July, to .408 with 10 walks in August. The month of June killed his overall numbers, but before he got hurt, he was clearly "getting it."

Posted by: John at December 8, 2003 08:08 PM

John, a very good point, and he's still very young so there's lots of room for improvement. However, I tend not to get excited about the ability to get on base until I see it happening.

Posted by: David Pinto at December 9, 2003 09:01 AM

So, in fairness, do you get more excited about 1) a player who showed improvement month to month (small sample size, granted) in the majors, or 2) a player who may or may not perform well based on numbers posted in Japanese leagues?

Posted by: John at December 9, 2003 02:18 PM

A good point. For his career, he's batted .309 with a .361 OBA. That's not bad for a middle infielder. If you look at how Ichiro and Hideki Matsui have fallen from their Japanese league averages, one might suspect that Kaz would do worse than that. It's going to depend on how well he hits, since he does not draw that many walks.

Posted by: David Pinto at December 9, 2003 03:02 PM