Athletes - Kazuo Matsui

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	Athletes - Kazuo Matsui

Kazuo Matsui (松井稼頭央 Matsui Kazuo, born October 23, 1975 in Osaka, Japan) is an infielder and switch hitter in Major League Baseball and plays for the New York Mets. Prior to joining the Mets, he enjoyed a successful career with the Seibu Lions in Japan from 1995 to 2003. His best year was 2002, when he had a .332 batting average with 36 home runs as well as 36 stolen bases.

With the Mets, his most notable accomplishment has been hitting home runs in his first at bat of both the 2004 and 2005 seasons. In 2004, he homered on the first pitch from Russ Ortiz of the Atlanta Braves leading off the first inning and, in 2005, on the sixth pitch from Paul Wilson of the Cincinnati Reds with one out in the first inning. Despite this, Matsui has been regarded as a disappointment in his Major League career. Based on his record in Japan, he was expected to excel defensively as a shortstop but, in 2004, made many errors and misjudgements at the position, and was made the second baseman for 2005. His offensive production has also been much lower than anticipated. By mid-2005, he was no longer an everyday player, sharing time at second base with Miguel Cairo and Marlon Anderson.

In his two-year major league career, Matsui has batted .265 with 10 home runs, 68 RBI and 20 stolen bases in 201 games played.

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Athletes - Kazuo Matsui

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