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Japan to honor baseball greats Nagashima, Matsui

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Why have they waited so long to give it to Mr Baseball? Oh received it years ago, and Nagashima should have as well for being the face of Japanese baseball both as a player and manager for years.

What did Matsui do to deserve this award? I guess popularity is all that it is about.

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Matsui and Nagashima, who is to Japanese baseball what Pele is to Brazilian soccer.

Please...Ok I agree with Nagashima, for Japanese baseball, but to put Matsui in the same breath? I don't think so!

If this is a part of the criteria then Ichiro deserves it even more NOW!

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What did Matsui do to deserve this award? I guess popularity is all that it is about.

exactly, but some readers here will ask you to praise him...else? you do not know anything about baseball. would refain from commenting on Mr. Nagashima's recrod but wishing him good health.

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exactly, but some readers here will ask you to praise him...else? you do not know anything about baseball.

Maybe it's because he drew 5 consecutive walks when he played for Seriyo HS at Koshien. I know a bit about Matsui and he was a decent MLB player in his prime, but not HOF calibre. As a supposedly power hitter in 10 years in MLB he averaged UNDER 20 homer runs per year, and while statistically speaking he had a few decent years in MLB it doesnt merit this type of award in my opinion.

Matsui's comprehensive stats from MLB http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/matsuhi01.shtml

His basic stats including one's from JPB http://www.japaneseballplayers.com/en/player.php?id=matsui

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Yubaru Apr. 03, 2013 - 07:28AM JST Please...Ok I agree with Nagashima, for Japanese baseball, but to put Matsui in the same breath?

Well, Nagashima never played in MLB so it's hard to say how good he was. Nagashima never had the defensive range that Greg Nettles or Brooke Robinson had. Matsui was a great power hitter in Japan, but when he played in MLB, he turned out to be more of a line drive hitter and had few great seasons with the Yankees.

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Matsui's awesome, haters gonna hate

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Matsui's awesome, haters gonna hate

Sadly the definition of "awesome" has lost it's luster. Matsui was a good player, but one worthy of this award?

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Well, Nagashima never played in MLB so it's hard to say how good he was. Nagashima never had the defensive range that Greg Nettles or Brooke Robinson had. Matsui was a great power hitter in Japan, but when he played in MLB, he turned out to be more of a line drive hitter and had few great seasons with the Yankees.

I agree, but seeing as how this is a Japanese award I do understand why Nagashima won it. His lifetime accomplishments for promoting Japanese baseball and being "Mr. Baseball" here in Japan warrant it on that alone.

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Yubaru Apr. 03, 2013 - 07:51AM JST As a supposedly power hitter in 10 years in MLB he averaged UNDER 20 homer runs per year, and while statistically speaking he had a few decent years in MLB it doesnt merit this type of award in my opinion.

I disagree. If Matsui did not play in Japan for many seasons and gone directly to MLB at his youth, he might've been a potential HOF in the U.S. Remember, he hit over 300 homers in Japan. Maybe he had his best years Japan when he had good legs and defensive skills. If you were building team around one impact player in prime of his career from Japan, Matsui comes pretty close to the top. He could carry a team and not a inflated statistics of dribbler singles like the other selfish guy.

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I have to agree with Yubaru on this one -- while I do like Matsui very much, more for his character than his playing, his skill doesn't warrant the award relative to the others to have gotten it, or to Nagashima. Matsui was a decent player at best, but Mr. Baseball was something else. I think Matsui being honoured comes more from the fact that he was a decent player AND he brought Japan more into the limelight internationally.

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I think Hideo Nomo should be in the same spotlight. A great pitcher.

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smithinjapanApr. 03, 2013 - 08:18AM JST while I do like Matsui very much, more for his character than his playing, his skill doesn't warrant the award relative to the others to have gotten it

His skills doesn't warrant it? Well, how many Japanese ballplayers hit total of over 500 home runs in Japan and MLB? If Matsui played entire career in Japan, he probably would've hit close to 700 home runs. What more do you want? And you label him as just a decent player?

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I can see why Nagashima got the recognition and wonder why he's only receiving it now.

Matsui? Sure, he was a good player but does he deserve the HOF? I don't think so. Nomo was the first Japanese player to go Major and had a good career. Doesn't he deserve the recognition before Matsui?

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surely there must be a more worthy recipient than matsui? seriously, this award has just turned into those silly honors like "best jeanist" or "best sunglassist."

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this award has just turned into those silly honors like "best jeanist" or "best sunglassist."

Which is about the right level, given that we're talking about grown men playing rounders ; )

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I disagree. If Matsui did not play in Japan for many seasons and gone directly to MLB at his youth, he might've been a potential HOF in the U.S.

Besides it being a moot point, but for discussions sake: I disagree, and here is why; Here in Japan Matsui went right to the parent club, at best a AAAA team and no way close to even an average MLB team. Also IF Matsui went straight to the MLB he would have had to go through the minor league system, there is no MLB club that would have put a position player like him in the starting lineup. ALSO, while Japan has some very good pitchers here Matsui would have had to face good to great pitching every single day in the US and odds are he wouldn't have done as well.

But it's a moot point.

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I think Hideo Nomo should be in the same spotlight. A great pitcher.

But JPB will never forgive Nomo for doing what he did when he went to the US to play. The rules here got changed regarding players here, (the first time) because of Nomo. If I remember correctly JPB invented their version of the posting system after Nomo.

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Yubaru Apr. 03, 2013 - 02:04PM JST I disagree, and here is why; Here in Japan Matsui went right to the parent club, at best a AAAA team and no way close to even an average MLB team.

My only objection would be to "I don't need to look at Matsui's NPB stats because his MLB stats aren't good enough." Either NPB stats add to the case or they don't. They don't have to be weighted the same obviously and maybe you'd even come to the conclusion that, with Matsui's MLB performance, he'd have to have been Babe Ruth in NPB to meet your standards, but at least you'd be applying your standard fairly.

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@sfjp330

" when he played in MLB, he turned out to be more of a line drive hitter"

Yeah, because he was playing against roided/juiced up American pitchers/batters most of his career over there,

smh

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I believe Ichiro was going to receive the award but declined and said he wanted it when he was older.

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Hide Suzuki Apr. 05, 2013 - 02:30AM JSTYeah, because he was playing against roided/juiced up American pitchers/batters most of his career over there,

No. Matsui found out that all the baseball parks in the U.S. is alot bigger than in Japan. Home runs that Matsui was hitting in Japan turned out to be long fly outs or double in the U.S. No more cheap home runs except short porch at right field line in Yankee Stadium.

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@sfjp330

"No"

Yes. If you are denying that majority of American players weren't getting extra help with steroid, then you have zero credibility.

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Hide SuzukiApr. 05, 2013 - 02:30AM JST Yes. If you are denying that majority of American players weren't getting extra help with steroid, then you have zero credibility.

What is your point?

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As a supposedly power hitter in 10 years in MLB he averaged UNDER 20 "homer runs" per year

Yes, but in 10 years he played the equivalent of less than 8 full seasons. He averaged over 23 home runs per regular season played.

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@sfjp330

"What is your point?"

Are you really that slow ? My point is "he was playing against roided/juiced up American pitchers/batters most of his career"

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Hide Suzuki Apr. 06, 2013 - 06:21AM JST Are you really that slow ? My point is "he was playing against roided/juiced up American pitchers/batters most of his career"

All players that played in the Bonds era were in the same situation, so what does it matter? Point is Matsui was never known to use steroids so his stats are not tainted.

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Nagashima in the same class as Matsui? So he was big in Japan, but never got the chance to play major league. But that is kind of like being a star in the Scottish Premier League and never playing in England.

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Nagashima in the same class as Matsui? So he was big in Japan, but never got the chance to play major league. But that is kind of like being a star in the Scottish Premier League and never playing in England.

I think some people have a hard time actually reading the articles posted here before making comments.

This is a JAPANESE award, so whether or not he played MLB doesnt matter.

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