Seattle vs. Yankees

I'm worried about both of them. They are both in a small slump.

I was at the game tonight. I have never seen so many Japanese people at a single event in this country. I think some of them were disappointed since both Ichiro and Matsui played average games. I was glad that Matsui got a clean single off of Hasegawa, but a 6-0 loss was a disappointment.

No rivalry. While Japanese players do have a competitive spirit, it's not at the level of pro wrestling hype or shouting "in your face!" at each other. It's reflected in the language: "Gambarimasu" - "I'll do my best" when said about oneself, or "Do your best" when wishing someone else well. The closest thing in English is "Good luck." But that has the connotation of having something external have a hand in the matter, whereas gambaru is all about having prepared oneself and giving one's all.

It's not nearly as interesting as I'm sure the press wants to hype it up. Like the recent war was a let down to the press who seemed to be expecting a Hollywood style action filled, highly dramatic battle between good and evil, the reality wasn't nearly as exciting. Even some of the interviewees on CNN were asking, "well, what do you want me to say?!" to that idiot blond chick on in the morning New York time. (Haven't seen her lately, is she finally gone?) I have the impression that the Japanese players felt the same, like the press wanted them to make bold statements against one another, but they were too professional to stoop to such a level.

The May 1, 2003 Tacoma News Tribune [Link] explains how the rumor got started.

After Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui met, there was a rumor that Kazuhiro Sasaki had a sign over his locker that read "I will not answer questions on Matsui."

Shigetoshi Hasegawa said, "They don't get anything right here," because the sign was over Shige's locker not Kazu's.

I think Hasegawa is carrying on the Mariner clubhouse "jokester" role that Jay Buhner and Tom Paciorek used to hold.

Just sitting at the computer after returning home from the last game of the three-game Mariners-Yankees set. Indeed, I have never seen so many Japanese at Yankee Stadium, most of them appearing to be tourists now making Zen Homage to the Bronx an essential element of the complete New York experience. That was rather nice to see.

Alas, the play of Matsui and Ichiro was a let-down; Godzilla struck out late in the game with the bases loaded, and Ichiro was nailed twice at second by catcher Jorge Posada's amazing arm.

The big winners of the game and at the cashbox are the Yankees. Even I was sucker enough to buy two $22 T-shirts featuring the "Matsui-Suzuki Showdown in the Bronx." Some showdown: toy guns all around. Wait 'til next month in Seattle.

Actually the majority of the Japanese people at the game were people that live in the NY/NJ area because of business reasons. The travel agencies that bought many tickets did not get as many visitors so they were giving away their tickets to clients.

By the way, Ichiro was caught stealing only once. The other time was a force-out on a bunt by Winn. And the big winners are MLB because all merchandice, including your shirt, are marketed by the league. Proceeds go to all the teams and the players association. So even a small market team like KC gets a cut of Godzilla vs. Ichiro.

Thanks for setting me straight on Ichiro's outs -- I should have specified just how he was "nailed" by Posada. In the case of Winn's sacrifice bunt, I was surprised to see Posada throw to second (as, no doubt, was Ichiro!). Obviously the intended strategy was to give up the out at first and put a man on second, not vice versa.

My observation of the Japanese fans was also based on having been in the Times Square area the evening before, with a native tora-kichi tomodachi. We were amazed to see so many Nihonjin there sporting NY Yankee shirts, caps, etc., clearly bought that night at the stadium, in search of a late-night snack before returning to their hotels. As far as we could tell, these were Golden Week trippers who had timed their visits to coincide with the Ichiro-Matsui matchup (and possibly the much-advertised Sakura Matsuri at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens a few days earlier). So perhaps I was pre-disposed when I made my observations in the Bronx that next evening.

In any case it is a wonderful thing to see, and I only hope the heightened fandom leads to interest in the other direction, of Americans wanting to know more about the Japanese game. Imagine Bernie Williams in Hanshin pinstripes...

See the May 7, 2003 JapanToday [Link] for a write-up of the matchup pitting Matsui vs. Ichiro/Hasegawa in Seattle.

Ichiro looks like he is coming out of his slump. Suzuki went 3-for-6 with three RBIs in Tuesday's opening game in Seattle. Shigetoshi Hasegawa allowed only one Yankee hit in two innings to lower his ERA to 0.46 in 19.2 innings. Hideki Matsui went 2-for-3.

Matsui did not go 2 for 3. He made out the first three times up although he was credited with a RBI when he grounded out.

I made a mistake: Hideki Matsui went 2-for-5 (not 2-for-3) in the game versus the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday.

I thought Wednesday's game included some very interesting comments by Joe Morgan (former MLB baseball player) regarding pitching to Ichiro and Matsui.

Regarding Ichiro - as I mentioned last year (and this thread was for some unknown reason disallowed), his batting average after the All Star break was about .260. Joe Morgan commented that the MLB pitchers now understand how to pitch to Ichiro - pound him inside on the hands and then go away.

I am a big Ichiro fan, however, I don't think that he is in a slump right now. I really believe that he will hit around .270 or .280 the rest of his career in the United States unless he starts making adjustments to his swing.

Regarding Hideki - he obviously has some issues with the MLB fastball. He can definitely hit the change up, but was definitely overmatched with Mussina's fastball. Joe Morgan constantly pointed out that Hideki can handle the low fastball but cannot catch up to the high fastball. He starts his swing too far from his body which becomes an issue when trying to hit the high fastball.

I am wondering if this was the case when both of these players played in Japan?

Ichiro, with his speed, should be a .300 hitter.

As far as your Hideki Matsui comment goes, you said that he was over-matched by Mussina's fastball? That would be a difficult achievement since they play on the same team.

Actually, Ichiro has changed his batting form since coming to the Majors. In Japan, Ichiro's form was known as the "pendulum" for his leg movement while batting. However, during his first spring training in the Majors (or was it after?), when Ichiro officially joined the Mariners, Ichiro adjusted his form and swing so that he could keep up to the major league pitching, especially the fastball.

Although not sure about Matsui's stats against fast pitchers in Japan, his memorial 50th homerun in 2002 came off Ryota Igarashi, which if I recall correctly was a fastball at the speed of 152kmph (95mph?). The pitch was high and a little outside, and Matsui slammed the pitch into the area left of the "backscreen."

In following baseball, you must keep in mind that even if a ball is thrown at 95-97 mph, if it is right down the middle of the strike zone, it can be hit by a good professional hitter. What Matsui has to get used to is the good pitchers that can locate their 95 mph fastballs high/low or on the corners of the plate.

To his credit, he seems to have a good eye for the strike zone, so he does not go after many bad pitches.

Over the last 7 days, Ichiro is hitting .364, Matsui .333.

Joe Morgan makes some good points, and no doubt pitchers are adjusting to Ichiro, but Ichiro is too good and has been too consistent, including his years in Japan, to remain baffled by pitchers' adjustments. He will adjust to how pitchers now pitch to him, and will return to being an on-base machine. One concern I do have is the condition of his legs. He's not stealing much, and his number of infield singles (despite 2 today) is down. I know he had knee troubles in the 2nd half of last season, a reason why his numbers plummetted. Is this persisting?

Regarding Matsui, he has repeatedly said he's still trying to adjust. I don't think he's looking to jack the ball like he was here last year. How long this "adjustment" period will take is a matter of speculation, but I think he will post good numbers, especially after the All-Star break. There are so many pitchers he still has never seen before.

Ichiro went to the non-pendalum form for the 2000 season. During his spring with the Mariners and throughout the 1999 season he still used the furikko dahou.

IMO, Matsui's problem is not the speed of the fastballs, but their movement. Japanese pitchers tend to throw straight fastballs (it isn't for nothing that the Japanese word for "fastball" is sutoreito), while MLB pitchers tend to have more movement on their heaters. I also think that Matsui is waiting on pitches a little more to increase his contact, at some sacrifice to his power. Through out the season I expect him to get more comfortable and the power will come.

I will admit that I thought he might struggle at first with change-ups, since it is not a common pitch in Japan (compared to the fork). But he seems to have no problem with them.

May 9, 2003 Tacoma Tribune's [Link] has a Darrin Beene article about the amazing media circus for Matsui's visit to Seattle's Safeco Field.

Hideki Matsui's extreme patience is noted in handling the 100+ Japanese media following Matsui, Ichiro, Sasaki, and Hasegawa.