Former Major League pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka signed a contract with Fukuoka Softbank Hawks of the Pacific League in Japan.
The news of Matsuzaka's signing was reported by The Japan Times following a season for the New York Mets in 2014. Fukuoka is coming off a championship season and signed a player who led the Pacific League in wins three times previously with the Seibu Lions.
Matsuzaka was brought over prior to the 2007 season by the Boston Red Sox but did not live up to the heightened expectations. His best season came in 2008, when he went 18-3 with 154 strikeouts and a 2.90 ERA with Boston.
Since that point, Matsuzaka has mostly struggled to return to that production. Some of that was due to injuries that derailed his success. He spoke about that last season, via Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News:
Speaking from personal experience, I pitched through the pain for a while and I just I hope he doesn’t do that, pitch through the pain and do things that can affect him later in his career. ...
There is definitely not much good that can come from pitching through pain. Especially with pain you have to make adjustments to your mechanics and one thing leads to another, not much good that comes from it.
After going 3-3 with a 3.89 ERA last season with the New York Mets, Matsuzaka might have still had some value on the MLB market. Already 34 years old, it appears Matsuzaka will likely find more success in Japan than he did during his final year in the MLB.
With his return to Japan, he has a chance to reclaim the fame he once had on the international stage.
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