TOKYO, 27 November 2004 — Japanese baseball star Hideki Matsui is hoping to put his World Series heartache behind him in 2005 as he launches his third bid for baseball’s ultimate prize with the New York Yankees. Matsui was in the Yankees side that was beaten by the Florida Marlins in the 2003 edition and squandered a 3-0 lead to archrivals the Boston Red Sox in this year’s American League playoffs.
“It was never a good season for us,” the 30-year-old outfielder told reporters at Narita airport as he arrived for his first visit home in eight months.
“The Yankees have not yet won the World Series since I joined. I want to help the team. Next year will be an important year for me,” Matsui said, adding that he was still smarting from the loss to the Red Sox, this year’s champions.
“As I look back, I still regret the defeat. It was a big minus for me,” he said.
Often a home-run king during his 10 years with the Yomiuri Giants of Tokyo, Matsui hit .298 with 31 homers and 108 runs-batted-in in the past season - compared with .287 with 16 homers and 106 RBIs for 2003.
“My batting got better in terms of both average and substance,” said Matsui, for whom 2005 will be the final year of a three-year contract. “I want to improve the precision of my batting so that statistics will improve as well.”
But Matsui, who has been romantically linked to a Japanese actress in recent months, said he would not picking up his bat until the New Year.
“I want to eat delicious Japanese food. But I have to watch my weight,” he said. “There are many friends I want to see and I have to train myself. I will be keeping busy.”
