Can The Yanks Afford To Lose Matsui?
By Frank Russo ~ November 17th, 2009. Filed under: Frank Russo Rants and Raves, Yanks Minors.
On the night of the Yankees Game 6 World Series clinching win, I received the following email from a friend of mine who is a scout for an NL Central team.
“Hey Frank,
Congrats man on your team’s 27th Championship! They really deserved it! I think the Yanks will have to seriously think about resigning Matsui. He’s such a clutch player and besides, he brings in so much money from Japan that it’s going to be hard to let him go.”
That was a really great point that my friend brought up in the email, and it’s a conundrum that almost everyone in the main stream media has failed to bring up.
When the Yankees first signed Matsui on December 19, 2002, they knew that they were not only signing a star player, they also knew that they were opening up the franchise to new revenue streams via the Japanese / Asian markets.
Besides being a solid and professional player during his tenure in New York, “Godzilla” has also been a consistent “Cash Cow” for the franchise. His mere presence on the Yankees has meant millions of extra dollars flowing into the Yankee coffers. Japan is, of course, a baseball crazy country. Matsui is an iconic figure that Japanese fans follow with the type of fervor normally reserved for rock or movie stars. Japanese fans, both in the United States and in Japan, have had no problem spending their money on Yankees paraphernalia associated with Matsui.
Brian Cashman is a smart GM. He knows better than to let sentimentality sway him when it comes to on-field decisions. Just look at how Bernie Williams’ situation was handled. Resigning Matsui goes beyond sentiment however. There are members of the Yankees organization who feel that the team will take a PR hit in the Japanese / Asian markets if they allow Matsui to walk.
Finding and maintaining alternative revenue streams is part of the life blood of every pro sports franchise, even for a colossus like the Yankees. From a purely baseball stand point, letting Matsui go is a no brainer, as it makes no sense to bring back a 35 year old DH with bad knees. From a financial and business standpoint, the Yankees will be taking a bit of a risk if they don’t bring “Matty” back. Only time will tell if It’s a risk that both Brian Cashman and Yankees management are willing to take. My guess is, in the end, they will.
