Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

[Lintyfresh85]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

are you guys sure the Sox get their money back if they don't sign D-Matt? I swear I read that if they didn't sign him they lost the 50 mill. they paid just to talk to him.

[SportsTop]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

are you guys sure the Sox get their money back if they don't sign D-Matt? I swear I read that if they didn't sign him they lost the 50 mill. they paid just to talk to him.

They get it back. Which leads more than a few people to believe that they may have just overbid with the intent never to sign him just to block the Yankees from getting him.

[eXperiment63]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

The sox want to sign this guy. They didn't 'overbid' so the yankees can't sign him. Will everyone stop with the conspiracy theories? Why would you do that? That just makes it so you have NO shot next year when he is a (U)IFA. Why would you disrespect someone like that when they can go anywhere in 1 year? Does it really make a difference, that one year I mean? The sox will make that $50M back in endorsements and merch sale 3-fold, easily, if they do it correctly.

If they sign him, they have him for 6 years... through the age of 33. They are gonna sign this guy.

[SportsTop]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

If they sign him, they have him for 6 years... through the age of 33. They are gonna sign this guy.

You really think Boras is going to let him sign a six year deal when he turns 29 in 3 years? 29 years old is one of the last years a pitcher gets a huge contract offer. And why would the Sox want to sign an unproving ML pitcher to a six year deal?

[Lintyfresh85]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

They get it back. Which leads more than a few people to believe that they may have just overbid with the intent never to sign him just to block the Yankees from getting him.

Ok, I knew I had part of the story right... so if they don't sign him, they get their money back but he goes back to Japan for another year? Effectively taking him off the market for the Yankees for another year.

Thanks for the info!

[chippered]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

Exactly. If the Red Sox don't negotiate in good faith, I wouldn't be surprised if Selig went as far as awarding him to the next highest bidder. The whole point of the WBC was to make MLB and international sport. Selig is going to do everything in his power to get foreign stars here

Selig cant do this. Its up to the Japanese teams ownership to approve any bid for him. If D-Matt come to the states, they want $51 million, not what the next team offered.

[Thrasha]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

What future? Tieing up nearly $100 million on an unproven player is a move for the future? A risky one to say the least. Not to mention that if this guy pans out, he'll likely be 29 when he becomes a free agent. So expect another huge salary from this guy in three more years (again....if he pans out).

Yes... It's a move for the future, I don't understand what's so hard to understand about it. It is risky, but it is a move for the future.

Secondly, the Red Sox aren't going to bend over and grab their ankles in negotiations with Boras.

It'll either be a 3 year deal, like Boras would like, but for significantly less AAV. Or a longer term contract, 4 or 5 years, worth more AAV.

Don't forget unless it's written in the contract, if Matsuzaka signs a three year deal he is still under the rules all new MLB players are. Meaning he'd still have to fulfill 6 complete years of MLB service to earn his free agency.

[eXperiment63]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

You really think Boras is going to let him sign a six year deal when he turns 29 in 3 years? 29 years old is one of the last years a pitcher gets a huge contract offer. And why would the Sox want to sign an unproving ML pitcher to a six year deal?

He isn't a UFA, so he goes through arbitration after 3 years in the league, just like any rookie. He isn't an (U)IFA, so he has to go through that. If selig allows him to skip arb, that is going to seriously open a big ol' can of worms for all future (R)IFA.

[chippered]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

He isn't a UFA, so he goes through arbitration after 3 years in the league, just like any rookie. He isn't an (U)IFA, so he has to go through that. If selig allows him to skip arb, that is going to seriously open a big ol' can of worms for all future (R)IFA.

Actually, I think he will be an UIFA after his contract. I read on ESPN that Boras wants a three year deal so he'll be an FA at 29 years old.

[Thrasha]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

Actually, I think he will be an UIFA after his contract. I read on ESPN that Boras wants a three year deal so he'll be an FA at 29 years old.

I'm not sure what you're confused about here.

He will be an UIFA at the end of his contract with the Seibu (whatevers). But he's choosing to go to the MLB now and because he has one year left on his contract to Seibu, they have to be compensated for his defection/departure.

When he signs a MLB contract it will have to be in the language of the contract that said team will nix his arbitration years if he warranted any at the end of his contract.

So the only way Boras will get Matsuzaka a three year deal and freedom to be a free agent at the end of that deal, the Red Sox would have to give up his arbitration rights.

Although I could be off on this, I'm pretty sure this is how it would go down.

[eXperiment63]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

The commish has to sign off on the waiving of his arb years too, it won't happen. He did it for Matsui and others, but they were FA when they signed with ballclubs, Matsu isn't.

[AI_Franchise]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

And why not? Matsuzaka is a star in Japan on the level of Ichiro and Matsui. NESN Japan is going to make them millions upon millions and will heat up the Sox/Yanks rivalry in Japan with Matsui vs. Matsuzaka. Of course the Sox are going to gain marketing to the extent of the Yanks and Mariners. They may not make as much over the long term if Matsuzaka flops, but their marketing deals will be as big as the other Japanese stars.

Are you from Japan? Cause if you're not, I didn't see anything that persuaded me to think he's anything special...only what a YouTube video of him?

Anyways here's something I found in Japanese Press...

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/sports/20061116TDY20002.htm

THE HOT CORNER / Matsuzaka pays off big for Lions
Jim Allen / Daily Yomiuri Sportswriter

He was the wunderkind whose name became attached to a host of young ballplayers. The insipiration behind the "Matsuzaka Generation," Daisuke Matsuzaka has grown up and is leaving home.

Because the label was largely attached to pitchers, it seemed fitting they be referred to as Generation K, but perhaps Generation M is now more appropriate--as in millions, of dollars.

On Wednesday, the Boston Red Sox bagged the negotiating rights to the Seibu Lions ace with a posting bid of 51.1 million dollars--that's about 6 billion yen, a figure nearly triple the players union's estimate of the Lions' 2006 payroll (2.1 billion yen).

"We couldn't imagine a figure as high as that," said Lions president Hidekazu Ota at Wednesday's press conference announcing the Lions' acceptance of the high bid. "We'd like to take that and use it for the good of the players and our fans."

All for the exclusive right to talk with Matsuzaka.

Seven years ago, that would not have been much of a conversation. After coming out of Yokohama High School as Japan's biggest household name, Matsuzaka was a self-possessed little snot.

After dominating school boys with his heat, the media buzz about his speed encouraged Matsuzaka to continually challenge pro hitters almost exclusively with his fastball.

While strength-against-strength confrontations quickened the pulses of fans, they only raised the blood pressure of those who wanted more wins and less theater. When Matsuzaka went to full speed, his fastball was straight, flat and hittable.

From the beginning, young Daisuke had a good slider and an adequate forkball, but when the heat was on, so was his.

After a 16-5 rookie-of-the-year season in 1999, batters adjusted. In critical situations, hitters looked fastball, fastball, fastball, and the youngster got lit up. In his second season, Matsuzaka was allowing 4-1/2 runs per nine innings.

That, and a 15-15 record in his third season, were low points for Matsuzaka, who began to have occasional success by going against the grain. Although the right-hander had been caught up in the mystique of his fastball, he had been hard at work on all his pitches.

In 2001, Matsuzaka's cut fastball emerged as an out pitch. Kazuhiro Wada, in the days before he became a star outfielder, caught a number of Matsuzaka's games that season. That season, Wada described the effect of the cutter on batters looking for the fastball.

"They think they can hit it but they couldn't get the sweet spot of the bat on it," Wada told The Hot Corner. "Instead of strikeouts, he [Matsuzaka] got easy outs--a lot of them.

"I think it is his future."

At the time, however, the most serious question about Matsuzaka's future was not his overreliance on his heater, but whether his arm and shoulder would survive years of abuse.

After throwing astronomical numbers of pitches as a high schooler, Matsuzaka routinely threw 160 or more pitches in games under intellectually-challenged Lions manager Osamu Higashio.

Although a leg injury ruined Matsuzaka's 2002 season, a new manager meant lower pitch counts. The following year, Matsuzaka emerged as a complete pitcher.

He still featured the fastball, but keeping up with Matsuzaka's 152-kph heat is a tough task when faced with the dizzying array of missiles he launched.

There is no longer any predicting what one will see from him, and laying off his nasty stuff out of the zone requires more discipline than most batters can routinely summon.

Matsuzaka still struggles with control early. But those early battles that used to spell disaster are now little more than speed bumps.

In 2004, Matsuzaka finally began to win the kind of big games as a pro that made him famous as a teenager. He won one crucial game after another as the Lions marched to their only Japan Series title in his eight seasons with Seibu.

His lack of control, his fatal attraction to his fastball and his childish off-field demeanor all used to mark Matsuzaka as someone who needed to grow up in order to realize his supreme potential.

But those days are long gone. If you don't believe it, ask the Red Sox.

(Nov. 16, 2006)

Isn't everybody feeling safe that they're not in Boston's position? They are looking like they got raped in the process...and again you're not the Yankees nor are you owned by an Asian owner. GOOD Luck getting your money's worth, the once proclaimed team as the Boston "IDIOTS"!

[chippered]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

I'm not sure what you're confused about here.

He will be an UIFA at the end of his contract with the Seibu (whatevers). But he's choosing to go to the MLB now and because he has one year left on his contract to Seibu, they have to be compensated for his defection/departure.

When he signs a MLB contract it will have to be in the language of the contract that said team will nix his arbitration years if he warranted any at the end of his contract.

So the only way Boras will get Matsuzaka a three year deal and freedom to be a free agent at the end of that deal, the Red Sox would have to give up his arbitration rights.

Although I could be off on this, I'm pretty sure this is how it would go down.

Im not really confused about anything. I believe the Sox got the right to bid for his services via the free agent market, meaning everyone had a chance, in theory, at having a chance to sign him. Heres the article I got my info from:

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/column...rry&id=2662289

"The length of Matsuzaka's deal could be a sticking point. Boras, in all likelihood, would prefer to negotiate a three-year contract for, say, $15 million annually, then take Matsuzaka out on the market again when he's 29 years old and a proven winner on the biggest stage. It's believed the Red Sox favor a more long-term commitment, at lord knows what kind of dollars."

[Misfit]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

Are you from Japan? Cause if you're not, I didn't see anything that persuaded me to think he's anything special...only what a YouTube video of him?

Anyways here's something I found in Japanese Press...

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/sports/20061116TDY20002.htm

Isn't everybody feeling safe that they're not in Boston's position? They are looking like they got raped in the process...and again you're not the Yankees nor are you owned by an Asian owner. GOOD Luck getting your money's worth, the once proclaimed team as the Boston "IDIOTS"!

I'm pretty sure there are 20+ teams out there wishing they were in Boston's shoes right now. That article describes the trials of a young pitcher, a guy who was 20 in 2002 , becoming a complete and dominating pitcher. He showed his tremendous stuff in the WBC, a time when he too was in "spring training," and it's likely he'll showcase marginally better stuff once he enters the league. From what I saw, he has a power fastball with movement, a knee-buckling 12-6 curve, and a great change-up/screwball pitch that if he hides well will be his money pitch in the AL. He also has a cutter and slider and some also give him a splitter. He's the best pitcher on the market, why wouldn't the Red Sox be happy about getting the exclusive rights to negotiate with him?!

[eXperiment63]

Re: Prized pitcher Matsuzaka given OK to pitch in MLB

Im not really confused about anything. I believe the Sox got the right to bid for his services via the free agent market, meaning everyone had a chance, in theory, at having a chance to sign him. Heres the article I got my info from:

It isn't via the free agent market like say a Cuban refugee. It is via a restricted-FA. That means, unless there is wording in the contract AND the commish OK's that, he is under RS control for 6 years. Unless you are an unrestricted FA, which he is not, you need the commish to sign off on arbitration relinquishment. Like I said, he isn't gonna want to open up that can of worms. What is going onr ight now is the same as a draft basically, they secured the rights to negotiate. You CANNOT waive arbitration for a first-year restricted FA without the commish's approval.