Kazuo Matsui

Kaz Matsui is going to be the next big thing from Japan this off-season. He is a 27 year old switching hitting short stop that has blazing speed, good power, and plays gold glove caliber defense. His stats can be found here, Kaz Matsui

The teams that have expressed interest in him are the Dodgers, San Diego, Seattle, Baltimore, Arizona and the Mets. Even the Yankees are looking to aquire him in their never ending quest to field a better team.

The reason i bring him up is because he is the type of player the Cubs desperately need. I dont think he is going to command the type of the money Tejada will get. Mainly because Ichiro signed a 3 year contract for $19 Million ($5 million signing bonus), and Hideki Matsui was signed for 3 years $21 million. So think 3 years $25 million for Kaz Matsui. So whoever gets him is going to get a relative bargain. No longer is Japan an inferior league.

For the most part he would give the Cubs a legit leadoff man who is an extremly accomplished bunter with some pop. He wont be a HR hitter just like Matsui probably will never hit more than 40. But he will hit somewhere between .300 and .330. Just like Ichiro and Matsui are hitting around their respective Japanese averages. Which means he will rely more on terrorizing opposing pitchers with his speed. Bunting, infield singles, extra base hits, HR's and the occasional walk. And once he reaches base he as the ability to turn that single into a double or even a tripple by swiping bases left and right. In otherwords the perfect lead off hitter.

Sadly just like last year the Cubs are expressing no interest in any player from Japan. I wanted Jim Hendry to dispatch scouts to Japan to atleast take a look at Hideki Matsui. He was a cheaper, younger, better option than Moises Alou. And its not like Alou was Todd Hundley you could find a team to trade for him if you really wanted to move him. So far i know the Dodgers, Mets, and Seattle have already sent scouts to Japan, with the Yankees i believe close behind. The Dodgers i would think are the front runners as Tommy Lasorda does some work for the Seibu Lions and has raved about him over the last 3-4 years. But money talks, anything is possible. Wish the Cubs would express some interest though.

Forget Tejada.........Cubs fans should be screaming for Kaz Matsui.