On Friday, New York Yankees legend Hideki Matsui was named manager of the Yomiuri Giants in Japan. He played for the same team for 10 seasons before heading to New York in 2003.
In response, the franchise issued a congratulatory post to Matsui on X, formerly Twitter.
“Congratulations to Yankees legend Hideki Matsui on being named manager of the
@TokyoGiants. Wishing you all the best in this new chapter!”
The Yomiuri Giants compete in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball League. They are also one of Japan's premier franchises. The Giants play in the famed Tokyo Dome and have won 22 Nippon Series championships.
Matsui played from 1992 to 2002. He finished with a career batting average of .304, 332 home runs, and 889 RBIs.
Matsui then moved to the Yankees, where he played from 2003 to 2009. Along the way, he became one of the most popular players.
Ultimately, he was a 2-time American League All-Star. In 2009, Matsui had a breakout World Series, batting .615 with 3 home runs and 8 RBIs as the Yankees won the title in 6 games over the Philadelphia Phillies.
In the end, Matsui was named the 2009 World Series MVP.
Eventually, Matsui would play for the Los Angeles Angels, Oakland Athletics, and Tampa Bay Rays. But his heart was always in New York and Japan.
In September 2024, Matsui hit a home run at age 50 in an exhibition game in Japan. That left New York fans hoping he would suit up for that year's postseason, but he didn't.
In 2018, Matsui was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in Tokyo.