I’ll never understand why after that 09 World Series sports illustrated named jeter sportsman of the year like how he didn’t do shit in that series it was all matsui an hell even arod would have been a better fit
Fun fact: Shohei Ohtani mentioned in multiple interviews on Japanese TV that his favorite hitter growing up was Hideki Matsui and tried to model his batting after him. Godzilla will ALWAYS be a hero in NY!!
Genuinely get emotional thinking about Matsui's 2009 season. He could barely walk. Every time he ran the bases, or even trotted after a home run, it looked like his knees were going to give out on him. Despite that, he had a typical Matsui season and then went God Mode in the World Series. It's one of the most inspiring things I've ever seen in my life.
He was the nicest guy ever. Met him in a Japanese market in LA, gave me a handshake, had a nice 5 minute chat, and signed my glove I was using as a little leaguer
People forget, or don't realize, that 10 of Matsui's 20 years basically don't count when people look at his stats. His MLB career didn't start until he was already 29 years old. And that those half-career numbers are still fucking good enough to warrant him a place on the HOF ballot.
Sucks that Matsui had his best years in Japan where they "dont count" towards MLB stats. Same problem with Ichiro, he would have insane stats with his Japanese and MLB stats combined
Lol. They don’t even make it to that World Series without AROD. Remember him? One of only five Yankees in the history of the franchise to average .300 BA, 40 HR, 120 RBI, and 100 runs scored for a 7 year period. 2004-2010. Without him the Yankees haven’t won a World Series since 2000. Remember that all of you idiot Yankee fans.
As a Taiwanese fan who started watching the Yankees because of Chien-Ming Wang, I would never forget Matsui’s contribution over the years. Thanks for the video and a great tribute to a great player
*Chien-Ming Wang was awesome. He was on his way to being a legitimate pitching superstar when he got hurt running the bases in Houston. Such a damn travesty.* *One of the best games he ever pitched in his career for the Yankees was in Washington against the Nationals. He was one strike away in the bottom of the 9th inning from getting a 1-0 complete game shutout victory when he gave up a 2 run home run. He almost never showed any emotion in his career, and was his typical calm self leaving the mound until he walked off the field and went into the dugout. He then completely flipped out, Paul O'Neill style. I don't blame him at all. In fact I loved the emotion. I just remember it so vividly because he was so dominant that day, and it was so out of character for him to ever show even a drop of emotion.* *I have no doubt that the Yankees would've had more than the 2009 championship if Wong had never been injured. #40 was that great.*
@@WolfCreekToys it was in 2008 I believe that was Joe Girardi and not Torre, but yes, bad decision letting him run the bases either way. Dude was a beast and that one injury destroyed his whole career
As a lifelong Red Sox fan, I will say that Hideki Matsui was my favorite Yankee from that era. Pure class, a "gamer", and any team would have been lucky to have him.
Hideki Matsui was my favorite player growing up. Didn't matter what his stats were, he always seemed to to get the clutch hits when the team needed them. Really got overlooked because of some of the other players on the team, but Hideki was an absolute champ. Now, speaking of Matsuis, when are we getting the Kaz Matsui video? He definitely wasn't great, but i feel like his career is better than most people would realize. Edit: After finishing the video, I love that there was a random mention of Matsui's porn collection. The legend lives on.
If he makes a Jose Reyes video, there will definitely be a mention of Kaz’s time with the Mets and especially how Reyes had to move to second base because Kaz demanded to play shortstop
Kaz Matsui was great for us on the Rockies. He really helped propel us to the WS in 2007. You could always count on his steady defense, high contact rate, and the ability to hit singles and split the gap when we really need it. I still remember him hitting a grand slam in the NLDS against Philly. That was awesome. Idk why we didn’t bring him back?
He was a steaky hitter. When he was hitting he was a great clutch hitter, when he was in a slump he couldn't hit anyone. Just look at the 2004 playoffs vs. the Red Sox. The last four games.
I never was a Yankees fan but I always liked Matsui. Just a monster at the plate and he didn’t seem to get caught up in the Yankees drama. I was glad he saved his best for last in that 09 series.
haha him apologizing for breaking his wrist after diving for the ball tells you what kind of ball player he was. Class act, one of my favorite players to watch growing up, ill never forget when he got his ring.
My little sister was 3 when hideki debuted w the yanks. Still today whenever anyone in my family talks about him, it’s not “Hideki Matsui”. It’s “deki masswee”. She LOVED “Deki”. She passed of an OD just about 2 years ago now@ 20, but, man did this make me smile just thinking about her. Saying “yaaaaay De-ki, de-ki, de-ki.” I still remember the first time she hit a “homer” off me in wiffle ball in the back yard. Running around the bases so excited. “De-ki, de-ki, de-ki” into the house to tell my dad. “Daddy I just hit a homer off Richie, just like deki does” man I miss her so much. Thanks for this brother… I’m crying my eyes out now. But in a good way. I’ve spent a lot of time blaming myself for her passing. “I should’ve recognized the signs” “I could’ve done something for her” etc. It’s been a lot of therapy sessions. Sometimes it’s hard to remember the stuff like this. The stuff that makes me smile. Usually whenever I think about her it’s nothing but sadness and despair. So I really mean it. Truly. Thank you so much for this. Edit: not to nitpick but I think you’re doing him a disservice to not mention that he hit a grand slam in literally his first home game as a yank. Incredible moment. He instantly became a fan fave and “earned his pinstripes” after only a week in the states.
Watching 2004 Red Sox vs Yankees series, i watched game 1, 2 and 3 so far, I think game 3 and this guy was like 5 for 7 absolutely killing the red sox pitchers
If the Yankees had won the series, Matsui would have easily been the ALCS MVP, he was the only person hitting better than Ortiz in that series, and Ortiz was ridiculous.
@@BaseballAF Looking forward what Ortiz will do and the Red Sox how they made the comeback, onto game 4 in the 7th rn. Watching history and studying at same time so I could know what to do next softball season, haven’t even played ever but judge and Yankees got me into it And the 2022 playoffs was really good for a fan who just started watching mlb like me, got into it even more
The play where he BROKE HIS WRIST, he got up and threw the ball into the infield first, and only after that did he allow himself to feel pain. This is one of the greatest men who ever lived.
Red Sox fan growing up and Matsui was an all-time Sox killer. I appreciate having such a worthy opponent, and his contribution to Japanese baseball is Hall-worthy in itself.
My dad telling me Hideki Matsui is a great player right before hitting his game 6 homerun off Pedro Martinez was the first moment for me as a kid that I really loved watching baseball and I've been a fan ever since. I've loved witnessing legendary moments happen in real time ever since
The thing is, the reason why the NYY were able to get a WS in 2009 was so much clutch from Matsui, Damon, and Posada. And A-rod finally came through and redeemed himself. Matsui was a great situational hitter and always worked more on RBIs than dingers. American fans of him in MLB didn't get to see him at his most athletic, when he was 18-28 years of age. He wasn't the fastest guy in JPB, but he would actually beat out groundballs and turn them into singles because he was solid out of the batter's box down the line to 1st. And he was pretty fast playing OF--which is where he wrecked his knees, playing on Astroturf in Tokyo Dome and some other venues in Japan.
One of my favorite childhood players, most of my earliest memories watching baseball were his first seasons with the Yankees. I would imagine a lot of current Yankee fans fondly remember his grand slam in the snow.
As a New Yorker a Yankees fan who’s first game was the 1996 World Series game at a cool 6 months and someone who attended the parade in 2009 this video transported me to such a joyous time. For 13 minutes I had a smile on my face, much appreciated.
Hearing “Who’s and our daddy” chanted and him ripping it into right will always give me chills when I think of it. So happy he signed and retired as a Yankee
6:06 While Kazuhiro Sasaki was older (32 years old) than Hideki Matsui when he won ROY, Ichiro won ROY honors at age 27, two years younger than Matsui's 29.
I recall that, espn was going nuts, can't have a veteran win Roy over Kansas city so angel berroa, crazy as they were all Japan big leagues are triple a here. So angel berroa won and he did what? Nothing
Seeing these clips give me a nostalgic feeling. They are snap shots of time in my life. I can remember where I was during most of these games. Matsui deserves the Yankee praise that he gets
One word not in this description, humble. The guy never showboated or showed off. Strictly professional from his first day in the MLBS until his retirement. Amazing guy and player!
Matsui is a legend, i watch highlights of him, my favorite one is when he made a home run vs pedro martinez, some japenese are legends, like him, ichiro, etc, japenese had a lot of talent.
3:15 ventura isn't lying. Japan's flag carrier japan airlines would go on to have the dream skyward promotion where they painted matsui's face and the words dream skyward on a handful of planes. Really hope they or all nippon airlines (Japan's next biggest airline) do a similar thing with ohtani in the near future.
My dad was a Yankees fan, so I was by proxy for many years. I still like watching them. But the only time I saw Matsui live was in Oakland when he was with the A's organization. He didn't go yard that day, but he hit twice and it definitely reminded me of his early days in the Bronx. I've not been to very many live MLB games, but he's certainly one of the people I'm glad I got to see play live.
As a kid, he was one of my all time favorite players to watch, and by far the most underrated Yankee of all time. He was past his prime, but still an all star level player from 2003-2009. His career with the Tokyo Yomiuri Giants is even more impressive. They didn't call him Godzilla for nothing.
Lies. I remember *exactly* how good Matsui was. He and Bernie were stone-cold killers in the playoffs. I hated them so much at the time, but I respect the hell out of them now.
I was a Yankee hater, but I always respected Matsui. He was smart, consistent, and always played the game the right way. He also always seemed to come through in the clutch. Class act all the way around.
Man I loved watching Tie Dye as a kid. Honestly him and Ichiro were the gateways for me getting into the Japanese league. Him and Tanaka are the only Yankee jerseys I've ever owned, two of my favourite Yankees of all time!
As someone who really started paying attention in 03 and as a result has been a Cincinnati fan watching Miggy from afar, I knew Godzilla was great but honestly forgot how great. Incredible player, and I do remember him fondly still.
I remember Hideki Matsuibeing the obvious ROY but not winning because people said he shouldn't win because he had played in Japan so he wasn't a true rookie. One of the people saying it was Lou Pinella, manager of the Mariners in 2001, when the same Lou Pinella lobbied for Ichiro, who also had played in Japan, to be ROY.
Is it really "obvious" if their production is practically identical? Pinella was an ass I'm not surprised he wasn't campaigning for a division rival's rookie to win the award. Matsui probably should have won the award, but to say that he was leagues better than Berroa that year is historical revisionism. Obviously Matsui was the better player over a career.
@@mattyice9535 like 30% more rbi. Yeah, it was obvious then and it’s obvious now. Plus all the clutch hits. It wasn’t close, and looking at the stats today and saying they were close is revisionist history.
@@snerdterguson RBIs mean jack other than he was batting in the middle of the stacked af Yankees lineup and Berroa was in the mediocre to bad Royals Lineup. Matsui was a negative defensive presence. Berroa was average. Nearly identical OPS. Nearly identical WAR. Nearly identical home runs. Nearly identical OPS+. Berroa higher slugging by a bit, Matsui higher OBP by a bit. Berroa had a 20+ SB season. They were both about equally as great as rookies. Matsui wasn't leagues better than him. If he was better, it was slightly. You can't just overlook the bad defense Matsui played and his lack of baserunning. That's a part of the game too.
I remember Hideki being one of the few reliable bats in any situation, Jeter obviously, Posada would on occasion get it... Bernie was old by then sadly, and Giambi you could always count on to work a walk... sadly, A-Rod was not reliable at all... talking about clutch, obviously, over the course of a full season they were all great.
Arod was hella clutch w the yanks… in the month of April… get out of the 1st month of the season and he was literally Aaron Boone on steroids… literally…
One of the greatest and one of my favorite Yankees during my time as a Yankees fan(edit: still a Yankees fan 😂)He was all business and deserved that World Series mvp in 09.
I feel like I knew hidecki matsui was that good. For the last couple of years I’ve been wanting to watch the Nippon baseball league!!!! (I watched some kbo during the Covid shut down). Great bud, keep ‘em coming
A true professional and loved his time as a Yankee. The 2004 postseason with his numbers and monster world series in 09 I will always remember. Got big hits for us in his short time with New York.
Matsui was a pure ball player and gamer. The dude did a lot of things well especially at the plate, I hate how baseball media in the US used to over look players that were well rounded and sensationalized players that were really one dimensional. Being above average at a lot of things is usually better than being very good at 1 thing. And he was like the Yankees left field 2000's equivalent to Paul O'Neill. The dude hit the ball hard to all fields, was a run driving machine in that 5 spot, walked and got on base frequently, and despite not being a freak athlete, and below average speed he covered a lot of ground in that big left field at old Yankee stadium with good postioning, anticipation, and read on fly balls, and was durable as hell his first three seasons. He was also very good situationally, runber at third less than 2 outs sac fly or line drive in the gap, runner at second no outs he would pull the ball to first. The only negative thing was he hit into a lot of double plays due to his below average speed.
A lot of people don't give this guy the credit he deserves. Besides being on a new team in the new league, he uprooted his entire life, and moved to a whole new country knowing very little of the language and the culture shot he must have went through. The social and family ties like you did his home country. And all of this on top of signing with one of the biggest Market teams, and the most stressful and environment the Yankees correct and he still was a phenomenal player. Much more difficult than someone from this country being in his position.
As a kid I grew up watching the Yankees from California. My family's doing. They were all about A Rod, DJ and Cano, but for me it was Matsui, followed by Mariano and an aging but still powerful Big Unit Randy Johnson. When the Yanks didn't offer him anything after his stellar 09 performance and winning the WS MVP I stopped being a Yanks fan. He WAS that team for me. Eternal respect for Godzilla. BTW I'm sure some of you know but originally Godzilla was a cruel name from the fans because of his skin problems in his early years in Japan, but after he proved himself it was instead an allusion to his power and style.
Matsui still got it i remember i think 2019 yankee old timers game he hit a legit home run that being on a batting practice pitch but it went out in the seats (they usually have a softball type homerun wall and bring it in)
As a twins fan, losing all 16 of our last playoff games most if not all being to the Yankees, I’ve grown up hating them. But I can’t deny they’ve had some very honorable players over the years. Matsui being on the top of them all for me.
The Yankees haven’t been back to the WS ever since the Yankees did him dirty and didn’t resign him I call it the Hideki Matsui curse and it still lives on
One of the greatest players ever man something that would of been cool to add in on this video about his Japanese career he was 17 at Koshien the equivalent to American March madness for college basketball but for hs baseball he got walked in the entire game in the championship round of the tournament and almost started a riot from the fans even at 17 he struck fear into his opponent’s Godzilla forever
Hideki would be a dream for a lot of teams. People remember all stars too much when it's 90% a popularity contest. Dude was kinda a monster in his prime
When I was a young Red Sox fan I remember being scared of Jeter then Matsui then Posada. Matsui is definitely one of the most impactful players that had a shortened MLB career.
If Matsui never played in Japan, and debuted in MLB at 22 years old, he would probably have ended up with around 335-350 Home runs and around 2,500 career hits.
Oh I know how good Godzilla was He killed my Phillies in the World Series and obviously deserved to be MVP Had the Yankees not collapsed in 04 he would've been the MVP of the ALCS Dude was a monster
I have a handicapped Korean daughter. in 2005 we waited for the yankees outside the old press gate. Hideki came over signed a ball and clowned around with my girl. After leaving japanese press surrounded us and assumed SHE was someone special..and japanese. We laugh about it to this day.
I was in Japan the day he retires at a Japanese household. They were having a special, recounting his career in Japan and in the States, with Hamada interviewing him. I wasn’t a fan of the Yankees, having fall out of love for baseball at the time, but it still felt special.
matsui was the only reason I cared about the Yankees even a little bit growing up. not gonna lie it really stung when the Phillies lost the title in 2009 so I felt super conflicted when he absolutely raked in game 6 lmao
OUR World Series MVP
I’ll never understand why after that 09 World Series sports illustrated named jeter sportsman of the year like how he didn’t do shit in that series it was all matsui an hell even arod would have been a better fit
still hanging on to 2009 i see
@@hoveringbanana782 it's less pathetic than how reds fans talk about their 2012 playoff run
But the Yankees didn’t resign him even though he carried y’all in that WS? 🤔🤔
@@tyroilsmoochie-wallace He was kinda done
Fun fact: Shohei Ohtani mentioned in multiple interviews on Japanese TV that his favorite hitter growing up was Hideki Matsui and tried to model his batting after him. Godzilla will ALWAYS be a hero in NY!!
Yes! Imo: a Yankee great!!
Hopefully Ohtani will be joining the Bronx Bombers soon
hopefully Ohtani signs with the Yankees to follow in his idol's footsteps
I wonder if Shohei bats left because of Matsui. Both are right handers who bat left.
@@grticecream now that's a fun fact! Thank you for that one
Genuinely get emotional thinking about Matsui's 2009 season. He could barely walk. Every time he ran the bases, or even trotted after a home run, it looked like his knees were going to give out on him. Despite that, he had a typical Matsui season and then went God Mode in the World Series. It's one of the most inspiring things I've ever seen in my life.
Yeah astroturf of Tokyo Dome messed up his knees.
He was the nicest guy ever. Met him in a Japanese market in LA, gave me a handshake, had a nice 5 minute chat, and signed my glove I was using as a little leaguer
People forget, or don't realize, that 10 of Matsui's 20 years basically don't count when people look at his stats. His MLB career didn't start until he was already 29 years old. And that those half-career numbers are still fucking good enough to warrant him a place on the HOF ballot.
Sucks that Matsui had his best years in Japan where they "dont count" towards MLB stats. Same problem with Ichiro, he would have insane stats with his Japanese and MLB stats combined
@@theItalianshamrock ichiro would be near the top of the goat convo had he played all in America.
@@carmelopearman5721 real baseball fans wouldn’t just go by MLB
@@acsone3546 unfortunately people in America still see the NPB as a minor league equivalent
The last Yankee's world series win, 2009, was thanks to Hideki more than anyone else
No way we would have won without him.
@@davyt0247 Without Matsui, Damon, and Posada, they would most definitely have lost that WS against the Phils. Arod carried them in the playoffs, too.
Lol. They don’t even make it to that World Series without AROD. Remember him? One of only five Yankees in the history of the franchise to average .300 BA, 40 HR, 120 RBI, and 100 runs scored for a 7 year period. 2004-2010. Without him the Yankees haven’t won a World Series since 2000. Remember that all of you idiot Yankee fans.
That's peak CC Sabbathia as well. ALCS MVP
As a Taiwanese fan who started watching the Yankees because of Chien-Ming Wang, I would never forget Matsui’s contribution over the years. Thanks for the video and a great tribute to a great player
Chien was great. Absolute travesty that his injury completely derailed his career.
CMW was already a perennial cy young until torre left him on the base paths in inter league play with I believe almost 9 run lead smh
*Chien-Ming Wang was awesome. He was on his way to being a legitimate pitching superstar when he got hurt running the bases in Houston. Such a damn travesty.*
*One of the best games he ever pitched in his career for the Yankees was in Washington against the Nationals. He was one strike away in the bottom of the 9th inning from getting a 1-0 complete game shutout victory when he gave up a 2 run home run. He almost never showed any emotion in his career, and was his typical calm self leaving the mound until he walked off the field and went into the dugout. He then completely flipped out, Paul O'Neill style. I don't blame him at all. In fact I loved the emotion. I just remember it so vividly because he was so dominant that day, and it was so out of character for him to ever show even a drop of emotion.*
*I have no doubt that the Yankees would've had more than the 2009 championship if Wong had never been injured. #40 was that great.*
@@superbrownbrown completely agree with this assessment!!
@@WolfCreekToys it was in 2008 I believe that was Joe Girardi and not Torre, but yes, bad decision letting him run the bases either way. Dude was a beast and that one injury destroyed his whole career
As a lifelong Red Sox fan, I will say that Hideki Matsui was my favorite Yankee from that era. Pure class, a "gamer", and any team would have been lucky to have him.
Hideki Matsui was my favorite player growing up. Didn't matter what his stats were, he always seemed to to get the clutch hits when the team needed them. Really got overlooked because of some of the other players on the team, but Hideki was an absolute champ.
Now, speaking of Matsuis, when are we getting the Kaz Matsui video? He definitely wasn't great, but i feel like his career is better than most people would realize.
Edit: After finishing the video, I love that there was a random mention of Matsui's porn collection. The legend lives on.
If he makes a Jose Reyes video, there will definitely be a mention of Kaz’s time with the Mets and especially how Reyes had to move to second base because Kaz demanded to play shortstop
Kaz Matsui was great for us on the Rockies. He really helped propel us to the WS in 2007. You could always count on his steady defense, high contact rate, and the ability to hit singles and split the gap when we really need it. I still remember him hitting a grand slam in the NLDS against Philly. That was awesome. Idk why we didn’t bring him back?
In one season, he had 16 HR with 100+ RBI, if that was not telling everyone how clutch he was, idk anymore.
He was a steaky hitter. When he was hitting he was a great clutch hitter, when he was in a slump he couldn't hit anyone. Just look at the 2004 playoffs vs. the Red Sox. The last four games.
@howie9751 no one hit in those 4 games which is why they lost an epic collapse.
I never was a Yankees fan but I always liked Matsui. Just a monster at the plate and he didn’t seem to get caught up in the Yankees drama. I was glad he saved his best for last in that 09 series.
haha him apologizing for breaking his wrist after diving for the ball tells you what kind of ball player he was. Class act, one of my favorite players to watch growing up, ill never forget when he got his ring.
My little sister was 3 when hideki debuted w the yanks. Still today whenever anyone in my family talks about him, it’s not “Hideki Matsui”. It’s “deki masswee”. She LOVED “Deki”. She passed of an OD just about 2 years ago now@ 20, but, man did this make me smile just thinking about her. Saying “yaaaaay De-ki, de-ki, de-ki.” I still remember the first time she hit a “homer” off me in wiffle ball in the back yard. Running around the bases so excited. “De-ki, de-ki, de-ki” into the house to tell my dad. “Daddy I just hit a homer off Richie, just like deki does” man I miss her so much.
Thanks for this brother… I’m crying my eyes out now. But in a good way. I’ve spent a lot of time blaming myself for her passing. “I should’ve recognized the signs” “I could’ve done something for her” etc. It’s been a lot of therapy sessions. Sometimes it’s hard to remember the stuff like this. The stuff that makes me smile. Usually whenever I think about her it’s nothing but sadness and despair. So I really mean it. Truly. Thank you so much for this.
Edit: not to nitpick but I think you’re doing him a disservice to not mention that he hit a grand slam in literally his first home game as a yank. Incredible moment. He instantly became a fan fave and “earned his pinstripes” after only a week in the states.
Sorry for your lost. Also, he did mention it around 3:58
Thank you for sharing that sweet story. May your sister rest in peace. Take care!
I cried for you. I can’t imagine what it’s like to lose an immediate family member. My heart is out to you
@@sleepking669 thank you. He must’ve done it while I was finishing up my novel 😂
@@diyfreediver thank you brother. You as well ❤️
Always glad to see Hideki Matsui get the recognition he deserves, even now.
Watching 2004 Red Sox vs Yankees series, i watched game 1, 2 and 3 so far, I think game 3 and this guy was like 5 for 7 absolutely killing the red sox pitchers
If the Yankees had won the series, Matsui would have easily been the ALCS MVP, he was the only person hitting better than Ortiz in that series, and Ortiz was ridiculous.
@@BaseballAF Looking forward what Ortiz will do and the Red Sox how they made the comeback, onto game 4 in the 7th rn. Watching history and studying at same time so I could know what to do next softball season, haven’t even played ever but judge and Yankees got me into it And the 2022 playoffs was really good for a fan who just started watching mlb like me, got into it even more
The play where he BROKE HIS WRIST, he got up and threw the ball into the infield first, and only after that did he allow himself to feel pain. This is one of the greatest men who ever lived.
Red Sox fan growing up and Matsui was an all-time Sox killer. I appreciate having such a worthy opponent, and his contribution to Japanese baseball is Hall-worthy in itself.
My dad telling me Hideki Matsui is a great player right before hitting his game 6 homerun off Pedro Martinez was the first moment for me as a kid that I really loved watching baseball and I've been a fan ever since. I've loved witnessing legendary moments happen in real time ever since
Me too, my dad telling me the same too, matsui is a legend🔥
He was so good man, always got a big hit I feel like. One of the first players to come from overseas and exceed/deliver on the hype.
I've had many favorite players, but Matsui was my first. Thanks for the tribute Jolly
What he did to the Phillies in 2009 was epic.
The thing is, the reason why the NYY were able to get a WS in 2009 was so much clutch from Matsui, Damon, and Posada. And A-rod finally came through and redeemed himself. Matsui was a great situational hitter and always worked more on RBIs than dingers. American fans of him in MLB didn't get to see him at his most athletic, when he was 18-28 years of age. He wasn't the fastest guy in JPB, but he would actually beat out groundballs and turn them into singles because he was solid out of the batter's box down the line to 1st. And he was pretty fast playing OF--which is where he wrecked his knees, playing on Astroturf in Tokyo Dome and some other venues in Japan.
Congrats on your partnership with Jomboy Media, you deserve what good comes of it
He was a big game player, his 2009 World Series performance was legendary
His stat line for that series is pretty much the best I’ve ever seen. He was totally dialed in.
One of my favorite childhood players, most of my earliest memories watching baseball were his first seasons with the Yankees. I would imagine a lot of current Yankee fans fondly remember his grand slam in the snow.
I loved Hideki Matsui growing up a Yankees fan. He was an amazing hitter and I loved watching him play!
As a New Yorker a Yankees fan who’s first game was the 1996 World Series game at a cool 6 months and someone who attended the parade in 2009 this video transported me to such a joyous time. For 13 minutes I had a smile on my face, much appreciated.
one of the most clutchest player!!!
I'm Japanese and from the same hometown as him.He's very proud of the town
I have fond memories of Hideki, what a great guy and great player
Hearing “Who’s and our daddy” chanted and him ripping it into right will always give me chills when I think of it. So happy he signed and retired as a Yankee
It was the obvious choice for him to retire as a Yankee.
6:06 While Kazuhiro Sasaki was older (32 years old) than Hideki Matsui when he won ROY, Ichiro won ROY honors at age 27, two years younger than Matsui's 29.
I recall that, espn was going nuts, can't have a veteran win Roy over Kansas city so angel berroa, crazy as they were all Japan big leagues are triple a here. So angel berroa won and he did what? Nothing
Seeing these clips give me a nostalgic feeling. They are snap shots of time in my life. I can remember where I was during most of these games. Matsui deserves the Yankee praise that he gets
That last games against the Phillies was one of the best performances by a player in the World Series. He went out a champ.
He was absolute dialed in. Locked in. Unreal performance. He was battling in every AB.
I went to the Home opener as #27. Matsui got the BIGGEST ovation. Louder than jeter.
One word not in this description, humble. The guy never showboated or showed off. Strictly professional from his first day in the MLBS until his retirement. Amazing guy and player!
Even the subtle bat flip at 9:56 is pure class.
Matsui and ARod made me shed a tear that World Series. What a run 🥲
Matsui is a legend, i watch highlights of him, my favorite one is when he made a home run vs pedro martinez, some japenese are legends, like him, ichiro, etc, japenese had a lot of talent.
Forever in our hearts
3:15 ventura isn't lying. Japan's flag carrier japan airlines would go on to have the dream skyward promotion where they painted matsui's face and the words dream skyward on a handful of planes. Really hope they or all nippon airlines (Japan's next biggest airline) do a similar thing with ohtani in the near future.
Ah good old Godzilla. Underrated monster. I always got nervous pitching to him in video games with the game on the line! Thanks Jolly!
My dad was a Yankees fan, so I was by proxy for many years. I still like watching them. But the only time I saw Matsui live was in Oakland when he was with the A's organization. He didn't go yard that day, but he hit twice and it definitely reminded me of his early days in the Bronx. I've not been to very many live MLB games, but he's certainly one of the people I'm glad I got to see play live.
One of my all time favorite Yankees.
Around 2004 my dad and I ran into Matsui at a mall in Tampa. We were both star struck, we still talk about it to this day haha
Loved this guy. Was glad he got to have his true glory on his way out in 09.
As a kid, he was one of my all time favorite players to watch, and by far the most underrated Yankee of all time. He was past his prime, but still an all star level player from 2003-2009. His career with the Tokyo Yomiuri Giants is even more impressive. They didn't call him Godzilla for nothing.
What a legend. I remember him bringing so much excitement everytime he was at bat.
Thank you for doing a video on this man. Growing up, Matsui was one of my favorite players on the Yankees.
Lies. I remember *exactly* how good Matsui was. He and Bernie were stone-cold killers in the playoffs. I hated them so much at the time, but I respect the hell out of them now.
One of my favorite players.
I love this series of videos. So much fun going back through forgotten careers. Thank you
As an avid baseball fan I absolutely love your videos and all the effort that goes into making them! Thanks so much!
Matsui is one of the players that really got me into baseball.
I was a Yankee hater, but I always respected Matsui. He was smart, consistent, and always played the game the right way. He also always seemed to come through in the clutch. Class act all the way around.
Man I loved watching Tie Dye as a kid. Honestly him and Ichiro were the gateways for me getting into the Japanese league. Him and Tanaka are the only Yankee jerseys I've ever owned, two of my favourite Yankees of all time!
As someone who really started paying attention in 03 and as a result has been a Cincinnati fan watching Miggy from afar, I knew Godzilla was great but honestly forgot how great. Incredible player, and I do remember him fondly still.
I just remember Hideki was always SO clutch in the postseason.
I remember Hideki Matsuibeing the obvious ROY but not winning because people said he shouldn't win because he had played in Japan so he wasn't a true rookie. One of the people saying it was Lou Pinella, manager of the Mariners in 2001, when the same Lou Pinella lobbied for Ichiro, who also had played in Japan, to be ROY.
Is it really "obvious" if their production is practically identical? Pinella was an ass I'm not surprised he wasn't campaigning for a division rival's rookie to win the award. Matsui probably should have won the award, but to say that he was leagues better than Berroa that year is historical revisionism. Obviously Matsui was the better player over a career.
@@mattyice9535 like 30% more rbi. Yeah, it was obvious then and it’s obvious now. Plus all the clutch hits. It wasn’t close, and looking at the stats today and saying they were close is revisionist history.
@@mattyice9535 it wasn’t that Pinella didn’t campaign for matsui it was that he specifically said a player matsuis age isn’t really a rookie.
@@snerdterguson RBIs mean jack other than he was batting in the middle of the stacked af Yankees lineup and Berroa was in the mediocre to bad Royals Lineup. Matsui was a negative defensive presence. Berroa was average. Nearly identical OPS. Nearly identical WAR. Nearly identical home runs. Nearly identical OPS+. Berroa higher slugging by a bit, Matsui higher OBP by a bit. Berroa had a 20+ SB season. They were both about equally as great as rookies. Matsui wasn't leagues better than him. If he was better, it was slightly. You can't just overlook the bad defense Matsui played and his lack of baserunning. That's a part of the game too.
@@snerdterguson yeah that's whack. Like I said, Pinella was an ass.
Matsui was a beast, I wish I could have seen him in his prime. Great all around ball player
No questions is a great player and Human be.Thank for your memories
so happy to see a deep dive on him. it was guys like Hideki that made me fall in love with baseball
I remember Hideki being one of the few reliable bats in any situation, Jeter obviously, Posada would on occasion get it... Bernie was old by then sadly, and Giambi you could always count on to work a walk... sadly, A-Rod was not reliable at all... talking about clutch, obviously, over the course of a full season they were all great.
Arod was hella clutch w the yanks… in the month of April… get out of the 1st month of the season and he was literally Aaron Boone on steroids… literally…
loved that we had Matsui those years
The MLB The Show "Japanese import" line didn't go unnoticed. lmaoooo I see you are a man of culture as well.
Other than Bernie Williams, Hideki Matsui is my favorite Yankee. What a guy
One of the greatest and one of my favorite Yankees during my time as a Yankees fan(edit: still a Yankees fan 😂)He was all business and deserved that World Series mvp in 09.
I feel like I knew hidecki matsui was that good. For the last couple of years I’ve been wanting to watch the Nippon baseball league!!!! (I watched some kbo during the Covid shut down). Great bud, keep ‘em coming
A true professional and loved his time as a Yankee. The 2004 postseason with his numbers and monster world series in 09 I will always remember. Got big hits for us in his short time with New York.
A'Roid saved their asses in the playoffs that year.
Matsui was a pure ball player and gamer. The dude did a lot of things well especially at the plate, I hate how baseball media in the US used to over look players that were well rounded and sensationalized players that were really one dimensional. Being above average at a lot of things is usually better than being very good at 1 thing. And he was like the Yankees left field 2000's equivalent to Paul O'Neill. The dude hit the ball hard to all fields, was a run driving machine in that 5 spot, walked and got on base frequently, and despite not being a freak athlete, and below average speed he covered a lot of ground in that big left field at old Yankee stadium with good postioning, anticipation, and read on fly balls, and was durable as hell his first three seasons. He was also very good situationally, runber at third less than 2 outs sac fly or line drive in the gap, runner at second no outs he would pull the ball to first. The only negative thing was he hit into a lot of double plays due to his below average speed.
His enormous collection caught me by surprise😂 great video
A lot of people don't give this guy the credit he deserves. Besides being on a new team in the new league, he uprooted his entire life, and moved to a whole new country knowing very little of the language and the culture shot he must have went through. The social and family ties like you did his home country. And all of this on top of signing with one of the biggest Market teams, and the most stressful and environment the Yankees correct and he still was a phenomenal player. Much more difficult than someone from this country being in his position.
Matsui is a legend
As a kid I grew up watching the Yankees from California. My family's doing. They were all about A Rod, DJ and Cano, but for me it was Matsui, followed by Mariano and an aging but still powerful Big Unit Randy Johnson. When the Yanks didn't offer him anything after his stellar 09 performance and winning the WS MVP I stopped being a Yanks fan. He WAS that team for me. Eternal respect for Godzilla. BTW I'm sure some of you know but originally Godzilla was a cruel name from the fans because of his skin problems in his early years in Japan, but after he proved himself it was instead an allusion to his power and style.
Highly underrated , Highly exceptional . Ichi Ban !
Matsui still got it i remember i think 2019 yankee old timers game he hit a legit home run that being on a batting practice pitch but it went out in the seats (they usually have a softball type homerun wall and bring it in)
I used to use this guy in mvp baseball 2005 he was an absolute god
mvp baseball was the shit i wish they would bring it back. do u remember the living room stadium where you would hit things for points?
A matsui video is exactly what I needed
Matsui was my favorite Yankee ever.
I remember very vividly Matsui going off in 09 WS. I remember Utley also going off, and I was legit afraid every time he came up to bat
As a twins fan, losing all 16 of our last playoff games most if not all being to the Yankees, I’ve grown up hating them. But I can’t deny they’ve had some very honorable players over the years. Matsui being on the top of them all for me.
Thank you for that! Hideki was such a cool. Yankee!
Love seeing these guys come over seas and play, it’s incredible and so fun to watch!
The Yankees haven’t been back to the WS ever since the Yankees did him dirty and didn’t resign him
I call it the Hideki Matsui curse and it still lives on
I like that. I'm going to use that now
Great video! Nice blend of sabermetrics and color commentary on one of the all-time greats.
one of my favorite yankees growing up. him mariano and soriano.
Japanese baseball legend one of the npb greatest players ever
One of the greatest players ever man something that would of been cool to add in on this video about his Japanese career he was 17 at Koshien the equivalent to American March madness for college basketball but for hs baseball he got walked in the entire game in the championship round of the tournament and almost started a riot from the fans even at 17 he struck fear into his opponent’s Godzilla forever
As a Red Sox fan, I have always despised Matsui a lot growing up, but I have total respect for him and his career through the years
Hideki would be a dream for a lot of teams. People remember all stars too much when it's 90% a popularity contest. Dude was kinda a monster in his prime
Matsui he will be always the best Bomber from Japan
I love your videos. This was so enjoyable to watch. Thank you.
When I was a young Red Sox fan I remember being scared of Jeter then Matsui then Posada. Matsui is definitely one of the most impactful players that had a shortened MLB career.
My fav! Big time clutch hitter!!!
If Matsui never played in Japan, and debuted in MLB at 22 years old, he would probably have ended up with around 335-350 Home runs and around 2,500 career hits.
Oh I know how good Godzilla was He killed my Phillies in the World Series and obviously deserved to be MVP Had the Yankees not collapsed in 04 he would've been the MVP of the ALCS Dude was a monster
I have a handicapped Korean daughter. in 2005 we waited for the yankees outside the old press gate. Hideki came over signed a ball and clowned around with my girl. After leaving japanese press surrounded us and assumed SHE was someone special..and japanese. We laugh about it to this day.
GODZILLA! I'm a Brewers/A's fan but man was it a pleasure to watch Hideki.
I was in Japan the day he retires at a Japanese household. They were having a special, recounting his career in Japan and in the States, with Hamada interviewing him. I wasn’t a fan of the Yankees, having fall out of love for baseball at the time, but it still felt special.
Still my favorite player of all time
matsui was the only reason I cared about the Yankees even a little bit growing up. not gonna lie it really stung when the Phillies lost the title in 2009 so I felt super conflicted when he absolutely raked in game 6 lmao
Thanks for posting this video.
love Matsui
What a great video ❤ Thank you so much for putting this together 🥰🙏🙏🙏🙏