Brian Cashman got an unexpected call from Japan last month, and it had nothing to do with a roster move or a trade rumor.
The Yankees general manager said Hideki Matsui reached out because he wanted to speak directly before taking over as manager of the Yomiuri Giants, the team Matsui once played for. Matsui was announced for the job on Oct. 23, and Cashman said the former Yankees star made it a point to tell him personally.
“Sure, always,” Cashman said when he got the message that Matsui wanted to talk.
At first, Cashman figured the conversation would be a routine Zoom call. Instead, it turned into a much more meaningful update from a player he still clearly holds in high regard.
“Then I thought that was odd, I was like a Zoom call?” Cashman told reporters at the GM meetings in Las Vegas.
“Hideki wanted to tell me in person that he was taking the job,” Cashman relayed.
“And I was so proud of him, and so honored that he would take the time out of his incredible schedule to share this amazing news.”
Matsui, now 52, put together a 20-year pro career that included a combined 507 home runs in Japan and the U.S. He came to Major League Baseball in 2003 and joined the Yankees on a three-year, $21 million contract.
Cashman said the move to the Yomiuri dugout was something he had long hoped to see.
“I knew the Yomiuri Giants for years, always dreamed of having him take over as manager of the Giants franchise,” Cashman said. “So that was not something I was anticipating on that day...but I’m so excited for him, I’m so excited for the Giant fans.
“He was a difference-making player for us, he’s a difference-making person. I wish they were all wired like him, so I am so happy to follow how his career goes next and I’ll be rooting for him every step of the way.”
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