Hideki Matsui Net Worth

Hideki Matsui (松井秀喜, Matsui Hideki, born June 12, 1974), nicknamed “Godzilla“, is a Japanese former professional baseball outfielder and designated hitter who played baseball in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and Major League Baseball (MLB). He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.

Matsui played the first ten seasons of his career in Japan for NPB’s Yomiuri Giants. During that span, he was a nine-time All-Star, three-time Japan Series champion, and three-time Central League Most Valuable Player (MVP). In 2003, Matsui transitioned to playing in MLB in North America, and spent his first seven seasons there with the New York Yankees. As a Yankee, he was a two-time All-Star and 2009 World Series champion, for which he was named the World Series MVP. After becoming a free agent, Matsui had one-year stints with three other MLB teams: the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Oakland Athletics, and Tampa Bay Rays. On July 28, 2013, Matsui signed a one-day minor league contract with the Yankees in order to officially retire with the team.

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During his 20-year playing career, Matsui hit 507 home runs — 332 in NPB and 175 in MLB. In 2018, Matsui was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame.

Hideki Matsui Net Worth is $60 Million

Net Worth: $60 Million

Date of Birth: Jun 12, 1974 (49 years old)

Place of Birth: Neagari, Ishikawa

Gender: Male

Height: 6 ft 1 in (1.8796 m)

Profession: Baseball player, Athlete, Actor

Nationality: Japan

What is Hideki Matsui’s Net Worth?

Hideki Matsui is a former Japanese professional baseball player who has a net worth of $60 million. During his MLB career alone, Hideki earned $83 million in salary.

Hideki Matsui spent the first ten seasons of his career in Japan with NPB’s Yomiuri Giants, with which he won three Japan Series titles. During his Japanese career Hideki maintained a batting average of .304, hit a total of 332 home runs, and hit record of 889 RBIs. In Japan, he was a nine-time All-star, a three-time Japan Series champion, a three-time CL MVP, received the Best Nine Award eight times, is a three-time NPB All-star Game MVP, received the Japan Professional Sports Grand Prize in both 2000 and 2003, was the Japan Series MVP in 2000, and earned the Matsutaro Shoriki Award in 2000.

After that, he joined the MLB’s New York Yankees, with which he won the 2009 World Series. Matsui spent the final years of his professional baseball career with the MLB’s Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Oakland Athletics, and Tampa Bay Rays. His American career statistics include a batting average of .282, a total of 175 home runs, and an accumulation of 760 runs batted in. His American career highlights include being a two-time All-star in 2003 and 2004, a 2009 World Series champion, and the title of World Series MVP in 2009.

Early life

Hideki Matsui was born in Neagari, Ishikawa, Japan (later merged into Nomi, Ishikawa). According to an interview on YES Network‘s CenterStage, Matsui originally batted right-handed as a child. However, when he started playing with his older brother and his friends, Matsui was such a good hitter that his embarrassed brother insisted that he bat left-handed or stop playing with them. Matsui soon became an overpowering left-handed batter, thereafter batting left-handed.

Matsui was recruited by Seiryo High School in Kanazawa, Ishikawa, a Western Honshu baseball powerhouse. During his high school years, Matsui participated in four National High School Baseball Tournaments at Koshien Stadium (once in the spring and three times in the summer). In 1992, he drew five consecutive intentional walks in a game at Koshien and became a nationwide topic of conversation. The intentional walks were considered excessive and unsportsmanlike but the strategy worked, as Matsui’s team lost. Matsui’s reaction to the intentional walks was widely commented upon by the media. “Matsui’s stoic, emotionless conduct during those at-bats drew great praise from tournament officials and reporters alike”, author Robert Whiting wrote. At the end of the tournament, a representative of the High School Federation declared that “All students should learn from Matsui’s attitude.

Early Life and Education

Hideki Matsui was born on June 12, 1974 in Neagari, Ishikawa, Japan. As a teenager, he was recruited by Seiryo High School in Kanazawa. As a student, Matsui competed in four National High School Baseball Tournaments, and in 1992 drew major attention when he had five consecutive intentional walks in a single game. Although the strategy was considered unsportsmanlike, it successfully prevented Matsui’s team from winning.

Yomiuri Giants

After leaving high school, Matsui was drafted by the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball. Although his first three seasons with the team were mostly unremarkable, he was part of the Giants’ Japan Series victory in 1994. Matsui had his breakout season in 1996 when he batted .314 with 38 home runs and 99 RBIs. He went on to become a huge star in NPB, leading the league in home runs and RBIs three times (1998, 2000, and 2002) and earning Japanese Central League MVP honors three times (1996, 2000, and 2002). Matsui also won two more Japan Series titles with the Giants, in 2000 and 2002. His streak of 1,250 consecutive games played was the second-longest in Japan’s history.

New York Yankees

Following his ten-season tenure with the Yomiuri Giants, Matsui came to the United States and signed with the MLB’s New York Yankees in late 2002. He went on to make his MLB debut in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays on March 31, 2003. Later, at the Yankees home opener, Matsui hit a grand slam, making him the first Yankee ever to do so in his first game at Yankee Stadium. He finished the regular season with a .287 batting average, 16 home runs, and 106 RBIs. The Yankees advanced to the postseason, and finally to the World Series, where Matsui became the first Japanese player ever to hit a World Series home run. Ultimately, the Florida Marlins won the championship in six games. In the 2004 season, Matsui finished with a .298 batting average, 31 home runs, and 108 RBIs. The following season, he set MLB career highs with a .305 batting average and 116 RBIs. Matsui missed most of the 2006 season due to a wrist injury, but managed to bat .302 with eight home runs and 29 RBIs.

In the 2007 season, Matsui became the first Japanese player ever to hit 100 home runs in the MLB. Hobbled by injury the next season, he batted .295. Matsui came back strong in 2009, his final season with the Yankees. That year, he broke the team’s record for single-season home runs by a designated hitter, with 26. The Yankees went on to play in the World Series against the defending champs the Philadelphia Phillies, with Matsui contributing three home runs and eight RBIs in his team’s eventual six-game victory. For his performance, he received World Series MVP honors, making him the first Japanese-born player to win that distinction. Further, Matsui became only the third MLB player ever to bat .500 or above and hit three home runs in a single World Series, joining Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

In late 2009, Matsui signed a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. He finished the regular season with a .274 batting average, 21 home runs, and 84 RBIs across 145 games. Matsui subsequently became a free agent, and in late 2010 was denied salary arbitration from the Angels.

Oakland Athletics

Staying in California, Matsui signed a one-year contract with the Oakland Athletics at the end of 2010. In April of the ensuing season, he scored his 2,500^th hit, and in July recorded his 500^th home run.

Tampa Bay Rays

In the spring of 2012, Matsui signed a minor league contract with the Tampa Bay Rays and joined the team’s Triple-A affiliate the Durham Bulls. About two weeks later, he was called up to the Rays for a game against the Chicago White Sox. Matsui went on to have a disappointing season, batting just .147 in his first two months. He was ultimately waived by the Rays at the start of August.

Retirement

Matsui ended his professional baseball career in the summer of 2013 after signing a one-day contract with the New York Yankees, and then formally retiring. The Yankees held a ceremony for him, as did the Japanese government in Tokyo. In early 2018, Matsui was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame as the youngest player ever, at the age of 43, to be inducted.

Personal Life

In March of 2008, Matsui announced that he had gotten married in a private ceremony in New York. He did not disclose the name of his wife, with whom he has two sons. They own an estate in Greenwich, Connecticut and an apartment in NYC’s Upper West Side.