WHY HIDEKI MATSUI IS NOW THE ENEMY

I’m not going to lie to you, I had briefly forgotten about Hideki Matsui shortly after I had written WHY MATSUI MAY TRULY BE THE SAYONARA KID and the Yankees signed Raul Ibanez.  I just figured the Yankees roster was then set and there was nothing more to talk about.  Then today, word came down that Matisui was about to sign a minor league deal with the Tampa Bay Rays, an eastern division rival…and I was pissed. Read about it HERE.

Look, you know me... I am a gigantic fan of Hideki Matsui and when he came to New York and signed with the Yankees, I bought into it big time!  Luckily, my love for him as a player never fizzled, in fact, it grew stronger.  I own a #49 jersey, a #20 jersey, a number #2 jersey and a #55 jersey, all Yankee jerseys...and I take my jerseys seriously.

I bought my Matsui jersey the season he broke his wrist and I pretty much wore the thing to Yankee stadium even though he wasn’t playing. I also wore it the night of Game 6 in 2009.  I normally only wear #2 and #20 but I rotate them on a loss so I have a fresh one ready to go…my wife calls me a nerd, I would agree, but I also call it luck. That being said, Matsui's jersey brought luck that night and he'll will always be one of my favorite New York Yankees… and now it appears that the Rays will see what he has in the minor leagues and if things go well, he’ll be up in the Bigs again, hitting against the Yankees and in turn, becoming the enemy. 

Any time an eastern division rival snags a former Yankee that I like, feelings change. It was never more evident to me then when David Wells went to Boston.  Not only was I annoyed Wells went, I was furious with the guy and I still kind of am...

 

Now Hideki Matsui, the 2009 World Series Champion Yankees MVP, has moved onto the Rays.  It could have been any other team. Hell, I would have even settled for the Orioles… but no, he went to a team that I hate second to Boston…Tampa Bay.

Now, truth be told, I hope Matsui succeeds, not the team, but him.  I want the guy to keep playing.  Hell, ya’ll know I wanted him back in pinstripes and I would have taken him or Johnny Damon over Raul Ibanez any day of the week.  When Ibanez finally signed, I accepted it and we moved on.  But if Matsui was willing and the Yankees felt like it could have worked, I would have been quite pleased.  Now I need to watch Matsui in a Rays uniform…more devastating than an Oakland A’s uniform, and he will no doubt be a successful hitter against my mighty New York Yankees, especially at Yankee Stadium.  When he comes to the stadium, while I’ll root for my team, there will be alittle part of me that will want to see him launch one in the right field seats.  Matsui was a good egg, a great New York Yankee and now times have changed…he’s a Ray… oh well.

Good luck to Godzilla.  I hope he has a great year… I also can’t wait to bury the Rays the next time we play them…that's just the way it is when you're a Yankee fan.

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