KND Report: Kazuo Matsui joins elite Meikyukai Golden Player's Club

August 15, 8:14 PMAsian-American Sports ExaminerMichael Street

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After being unable to buy a hit for the past two nights, Kaz Matsui
finally collected his 2,000th career hit today in Milwaukee (AP Photo/Jim Prisching)

Kaz Matsui has had a relatively modest MLB career, despite the high expectations he had coming over from NPB in the 2004 season.

But tonight he joined an eilte group of Japanese players, and one of just four players in both MLB and NPB, when he received his membership to Meikyukai ("The Golden Player's Club"), an institution similar to the Japanese Hall of Fame.

Unlike its sometimes-contentious American counterpart, election to Meikyukai is simple: any Japanese player who reaches 2,000 professional hits, 200 wins or 250 saves is automatically inducted.

No voting, no controversies, no veteran's committee. You're in, or you're out, and nobody can argue.

So far, only Hideo Nomo, Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui have reached those marks while playing in NPB and MLB.

Matsui had 566 MLB hits coming into tonight's game, which—combined with the 1433 hits he had in Japan—left him one short of that induction level.

Actually, he'd teetered at the same precipice for the past two days, but his 0-4 performance in Houston left Japanese media both disappointed and discouraged at having to travel to Milwaukee, a city they allegedly aren't terribly fond of.

As it turns out, Milwaukee was a great place to do it; Ken Macha, the Milwaukee manager, played in NPB for the Chunichi Dragons and was enough of a star for Ichiro Suzuki to have a poster of Macha on his wall.

Last night, however, Matsui was unable to collect his hit against Macha's Brewers, as he again went 0-4 in the 11-2 blowout. His former Seibu Lions manager Osamu Higashio had been following him for the past several games, waiting for him to reach the hallowed threshold, smilingly cheering his former player

But Matsui made good on the milestone in the top of the third inning, when he hit a hard shot to deep short. Alcides Escobar made a sliding play on it and came up throwing, but he wasn't faster than Matsui, who still has enough wheels to beat out the throw by several steps.

The Milwaukee fans gave him scattered applause, and Higashio gave Matsui a standing ovation, but the welcome was not nearly as rousing as it would have been as it would have been in Houston, the latest stop in Matsui's career, which has taken him through three different organizations.

Kattobase Nihonjin Dairiigaa!

Matsui was a highly touted player coming over from Japan.

In the NPB, he  averaged .305/.365/.549 in eight seasons, with 150 HRs, 569 RBI and 306 SBs.

As a switch-hitting shortstop, he won four Gold Gloves—in Japan, this award also reflects offensive production—and an MVP award in 1998.

Expectations were very high, and the Mets signed him to a three-year, $20.1 million dollar deal, making him the first Japanese infielder to play in MLB.

But he never lived up to the anticipation surrounding him, as he hit .272/.331/.396 in his first year, and .255/.300/.379 in his second season, when they shifted him to second base. He only had 20 steals and 10 homers, and injuries and poor performance soon pushed him into sharing second base.

In June of 2006, the Colorado Rockies traded C/OF Eli Marrero for him, then sent him to the minors to re-tool.

When Matsui returned to the majors, he seemed revitalized, hitting .345/.392/.504 down the stretch. 

After signing a one-year deal to return to the Rockies, he again put up solid numbers, hitting .342/.405/.746 in 104 games in 2007.

This was enough production for the Houston Astros to ink him to a three-year, $16.5M before the 2008 season. There, he would disprove the notion that his production was aided by the thin air of Mile High Stadium.

Though no longer a full-time player, Matsui's numbers were respectable, hitting .293/.354/.427 in 96 games. Mostly hitting first or second, he scored 58 runs and drove in 33 RBI—nothing amazing, but decent (if expensive for his contract).

In 2009, he's fallen back, with a .248/.300/.337 line in 88 games, largely at the bottom of the lineup, where he's scored 38 runs and driven in 29.

Though he has one year remaining on that three-year deal, he's sliding from a part-time into a bench role, and is certainly a lesser light among Japanese-born stars who reached MLB.

Tonight, however, he shone as brightly as any of them. Congratulations, Kazuo Matsui.