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Where EAST meets the Northwest
SOX SWEEP. Daisuke Matsuzaka, right, and Hideki Okajima hold up the World Series trophy after Game 4 of the baseball World Series at Coors Field in Denver. The Red Sox won 4-3 to sweep the series. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
From The Asian Reporter, V17, #49 (December 4, 2007), page 8.
Asian World Series disappointment
By Mike Street
Special to The Asian Reporter
Earlier this season, I’d hoped this year’s fine crop of Asian baseball stars would yield a World Series with a strong Asian presence. For once, my wish was granted. The teams in this year’s Fall Classic featured three prominent Asian players; one I expected to be there, but two were surprises.
We all expected big things from Daisuke Matsuzaka, but Dice-K struggled throughout the season, as unreliable as he was occasionally fantastic. After an adequate 3-2 April, with a 4.36 ERA (earned-run average), he slumped into a mediocre May, when he went 4-1, in spite of a 5.22 ERA. Just as he seemed to turn it around, with a 2-2, 1.59 ERA effort in June and a 3-3, 3.62 ERA in July, he fell back again, accumulating a 3-4 record with a whopping 5.93 ERA in the final two months of the season. Going into the postseason, Boston’s $50-million man was the weak link in their rotation.
Fortunately, Boston could rely on its other starters and a strong bullpen, including All-Star Hideki Okajima, the unsung Japanese lefty who quickly became Boston’s solid setup man. Okajima’s baffling changeup gave him and his signature pitch the nickname of "Okey-Doke," and he finished the season with a 2.22 ERA and a microscopic 0.97 WHIP (walks plus hits divided by innings pitched). While Boston could never be sure which Matsuzaka might take the mound, their confidence in Okajima was unshakeable.
Another preseason Asian mystery had been Kazuo Matsui, who had come to the Mets from Japan in 2004. He was known for his glove at shortstop and his extra-base power, but neither blossomed in New York, even after he shifted to second base in 2005. So in 2006, the Mets traded him to Colorado, where he had a solid half-season in Colorado and signed a one-year deal with the Rockies in 2007, expecting to split time at second base.
After a one-month stint on the disabled list, Matsui showed his value by igniting Colorado’s offense upon his return in May. Hitting second, Matsui moved leadoff man Wily Tavaras over for slugger Matt Holliday to drive in, and he contributed in the field with solid defense. By the time the Rockies entered their amazing stretch run, Matsui had cemented a full-time spot on the field and in the batting order.
Colorado finished the season by winning an incredible 14 of their last 15 games, including a thrilling (and controversial) tiebreaker against the San Diego Padres. With Colorado trailing by two runs entering the thirteenth inning, Matsui sparked their comeback with a leadoff double, scoring on Troy Tulowitzki’s double. Tulowitzki scored on a triple by Holliday, who then scored on Jamey Carroll’s sacrifice fly — though fans will forever argue whether Holliday was safe, there was no doubt that Matsui had once again set the pace for his teammates.
In the playoffs, Matsui and the Rockies hit their stride as Colorado swept both playoff series, becoming the first team since the 1976 Reds to win their first seven postseason games. In Game 2 of the Division Series against Philadelphia, Matsui joined Lou Gehrig as the only other player to hit a double, triple, and homer in a playoff game. Unlike Gehrig, Matsui’s homer was a grand slam — he knocked in half of the Rockies’ 10 runs that day. Matsui had a hit in six of Colorado’s next seven games, including a triple in the clinching game against Philadelphia.
The stage was set for the Asian showdown in the World Series, with Kaz’s hot bat representing Colorado and the dicey Dice-K and the solid Okajima hurling for Boston. As the first World Series to feature such prominent Asian stars on both sides of the diamond, the matchup promised some all-Asian thrills.
Instead, Boston steamrolled the suddenly chilly Colorado squad in four straight, with Dice-K picking up one of the wins in a decent Game 3 effort. Okajima, on the other hand, appeared in three games, but gave up runs in two of them, including the two-run homer to Garrett Atkins in Game 4 that gave Colorado their last glimmer of hope. Like the rest of the Rockies, Matsui seemed a shell of himself, and was beaten down by Boston, ending up 4-13 with one run and no RBIs.
Though the matchup seemed as promising as the Asian interest factor, the 2007 World Series was a dull one for all fans not in Red Sox Nation. The Asian stars ended up being sideshows to the Red Sox main attraction, only making their mark with mistakes: Matsui was mediocre, Dice-K was pulled at the first signs of trouble, and Okajima almost gave the game away. Then again, we’re all nervous during our first moment on the big stage, so why shouldn’t we expect Asian stars to be the same way?
Now I’ve got a new wish: a 2008 World Series with a strong Asian presence — and plenty of excitement.