1 Ichiro Suzuki Outfield, SEA Mariners
2007 G AB R H HR RBI SB AVG.
SEA 161 678 111 238 6 68 37 .351
He’s much more subtle in his approach, but like Kobe Bryant with the Lakers, Ichiro has developed so much pull in Seattle that he can dictate front office policy. Last season, the phenomenal career .333 hitter declined to re-sign with the Mariners until close friend John McLaren was installed as field manager. Ichiro continued his reign as the world’s best hitter in 2007, rapping out 200 or more hits for the seventh straight season. He will attempt to tie Wade Boggs’ AL record in ’08.
2 Kenji Johjima Catcher, Seattle Mariners
2007 G AB R H HR RBI SB AVG.
SEA 135 485 52 139 14 61 0 .287
Johjima has proven to be one of the wisest signings ever out of Japan. He now ranks in the top percentile of major league catchers after just two seasons of major league ball. The 31-year-old Nagasaki native is the rare backstop who excels at both defense and hitting. A workaholic behind the dish, Johjima led all AL receivers last season in starts (128), double plays (15) and gunning out base stealers (40), while committing just two errors. Only two junior circuit catchers (Jorge Posada and Victor Martinez) put up noticeably better offensive numbers.
3 Chien-Ming Wang Right-Hand Pitcher, New York Yankees
2007 W L ERA G IP SO BB SO
NYY 19 7 3.70 30 199 144 59 104
Wang is rarely mentioned among the game’s elite hurlers – funny, considering he pitches for the Yankees – but nobody has won more games than Wang over the past two seasons. Wang continued to put up all-star stats in ’07 but has yet to play in the game. Considering the city’s APA heritage, Wang would have been a natural to start last season’s mid-summer classic in San Francisco. The Taiwanese ace fell just one win short of 20 victories for the second season in a row last year. Wang posted a 12-3 ledger over the last three months of the ’07 campaign.
4 Daisuke Matsuzaka
Right-Hand Pitcher, Boston Red Sox
2007 W L ERA G IP SO BB SO
BOS 15 12 4.94 32 205 191 80 200
After the Red Sox shelled out more than $100 million for “Dice-K” last season, anything short of a 20-0 record and a half dozen no-hitters would have been viewed as underwhelming. His mysterious “gyroball” didn’t seem to make a lasting impression, his velocity dipped late in the season and his ERA hovered around 5.00, but Dice-K still led Boston in starts, innings and strikeouts. Matsuzaka earned the victory in Game 3 of the World Series, tossing five shutout innings. A year’s experience and acclamation to the major’s heavier workload should result in even better numbers for the 27-year-old in 2008.
5 Hideki Matsui
Outfield, New York Yankees
2007 G AB R H HR RBI SB AVG.
NYY 143 547 100 156 25 103 4 .295
After losing most of 2006 to injury, “Godzilla” bounced back in 2007, playing in 143 games. If healthy, Matsui will produce. He’s driven in more than 100 runs in each of his four injury-free seasons. Matsui’s 25 homers were second in the club behind MVP Alex Rodriguez. After the second-highest total of his major league career, Matsui’s failures in the Yankees division playoff series loss to Cleveland (2-for-11, 0 RBI) prompted rumors of a trade to San Francisco. It was a wise non-move — Matsui is still the second most dangerous stick in the Yankees lineup after “A-Rod.” At age 33, he legged out a career high four triples.
6 Kazuo Matsui
Second Baseman, Houston Astros
2007 G AB R H HR RBI SB AVG.
COL 104 410 84 118 4 37 32 .288
Matsui finally looked at home in the States, helping lead the Rockies to their first ever World Series berth. The power stroke that Matsui exhibited in Japan has never surfaced in the majors, but he has become a serviceable hitter. Defensively he has the range and the arm to play the middle infield position, but seems more at home at second base. He swiped a personal career major league-high 32 bases last season. Matsui batted .417 (5-for-12) with a homer and 6 RBI in division series victory. He signed with the Astros to replace the retiring Craig Biggio.
7 Takashi Saito
Right-Hand Pitcher, Los Angeles Dodgers
2007 W L ERA G IP BB SO
LAD 2 1 1.40 63 64.1 13 78
Saito came to the U.S. with the goal of just pitching in the majors once. Two seasons later, he’s already saved a whopping 63 games. The former Yokohama Bay Star worked a perfect one-two-three frame at last summer’s All-Star Game in San Francisco. He’s become one of the game’s elite bullpen aces. The opposite of former Dodgers closer Eric Gagne, who came at hitters with bluster and a blazing fastball, Saito sets up hitters with his fastball, then ices them with a deadly change-up.
8 Hideki Okajima
Left-Hand Pitcher, Boston Red Sox
2007 W L ERA G SV IP BB SO
BOS 3 2 2.22 66 0 69 17 63
While the press made such a fuss about Dice-K coming to the Red Sox last season, Okajima was an afterthought. But after allowing a home run on the first pitch he threw in the States, the crafty lefties soon proved that his value was more than someone to keep his more famous countryman company on road trips. Okajima was dazzling in a middle relief role for the Bosox, earning a trip to the All-Star Game and earning a World Series championship ring. A manager’s dream, he rarely walks anyone.
9 Tadahito Iguchi
Second Baseman, San Diego Padres
2007 G AB R H HR RBI SB AVG.
CWS/PHIL 135 465 67 124 9 43 14 .267
Don’t be fooled by his frequent moves around the league: Iguchi is a professional hitter with power. In ’05, he helped the White Sox to a World Series title, and last season, after a mid-season deal to Philadelphia, was a key reserve on the Phillies’ first post-season run since 1993. Iguchi signed with San Diego in the off-season to be their starting second baseman.
10 Akinori Iwamura
Third Baseman, Tampa Bay Rays
2007 G AB R H HR RBI SB AVG.
TBR 145 546 84 170 32 77 70 128 8 .311
After batting a sizzling .380 or better in four of his last five seasons with the Pacific League Yakult Swallows, Iwamura’s average dropped about 100 points in his first season in the majors. Still, .285 is pretty darn good. The power bat he displayed in Japan didn’t transfer to the States, but the 28-year-old did crack 21 doubles and a career high 10 triples. After playing most of his career at third base, Iwamura will switch to second base full time in ’08 to make room for rookie Evan Longoria.
In the Mix:
Kei Igawa
Left-Hand Pitcher, New York Yankees
2007 W L ERA G IP H ER BB SO
NYY 2 3 6.25 14 68 76 47 37 53
Pinstripes were not a good look for Igawa in ’07. In fact, the entire season was a disaster for this former Hanshin Tigers 20-game winner. The Yankees served up more than $25 million for Igawa’s services and got exactly two wins in return. He struggled from day one. It didn’t help matters that the southpaw insisted on wearing wraparound sunglasses on the hill. He lasted all of a month in the Yankees rotation before being demoted to the minors. Igawa fared better at Triple-A, but New York didn’t get him to beef up the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre starting rotation. He could wind up in the bullpen in ’08.
Hideo Nomo
Right-Hand Pitcher, Kansas City Royals
2007 – Did Not Play
Just when you think he’s faded into the sunset for good, the masterful Nomo reappears, looking like a human corkscrew and throwing strikes. After sitting out all of the last two seasons, Nomo turned up in the Royals camp this spring and didn’t look any different than he did back in 1995, when he broke in the majors with the Dodgers and hurled five shutout innings against the Giants. The original Japanese superstar to make it in the States, Nomo has over 300 pro victories, including 123 wins in the States. He’s slated to begin the season in the Kansas City bullpen. Nomo will turn 40 this summer.
Local Motion:
Kurt Suzuki
Catcher, Oakland Athletics
2007 G AB R H HR RBI SB AVG.
Oak 68 213 27 53 7 39 0 .249
The A’s would have been overjoyed if Suzuki had just played solid defense and called a good game after his call-up last summer. They got that and a potent bat, as the 24-year-old Hawaiian slugged seven home runs and drove in 39 runs in just 213 at-bats. He will be the A’s starting catcher from day one in ’08, and the club hopes to get him 130-plus starts behind the plate. Suzuki cracked first big league homer in just his fourth game with Oakland. He was a College World Series star for Cal-State Fullerton. Suzuki is never seen without a sparkling puka shell necklace.
Dave Roberts
Outfield, San Francisco Giants
2007 G AB R H HR RBI SB AVG.
SF 114 396 61 103 2 23 31 .260
The candid Roberts is the first to admit that ’07 was a disappointment. An elbow injury curtailed his effeteness early on. But once the problem was fixed, he played much better. The Okinawa native batted .344 (23-for-82) in August. The 35-year-old will begin the ’08 season as San Francisco’s first starting left-fielder of the post Barry Bonds era. Born in Okinawa to a Japanese mother and American father, Roberts was a key reserve on Boston’s 2004 World Series team and was greeted like royalty on the Giants trip into Fenway Park last summer. He is one of baseball’s nice guys.
Shane Komine
Righ-Hand Pitcher, Oakland Athletics
2007 W L ERA G IP H ER BB SO
NYY 0 0 4.70 2 8 6 4 1 1
Honolulu native Komine appeared in a pair of games for Oakland for the second straight season. He tossed a perfect inning and a third in his second outing. He will start the season at Triple-A Sacramento, but will likely get a call-up at some point in ’08.
Keiichi Yabu
Right-Hand Pitcher, San Francisco Giants
2007 – Did Not Play
Like Nomo, Yabu has not pitched in the majors since 2005, when he went 4-0 with a 4.50 ERA for Oakland. The 39-year-old Mie, Japan, native spent last season throwing into a net in San Mateo with the hopes of landing one last chance. The Giants gave him a shot this spring, and he’s looked solid. If he makes the club, Yabu will pitch out of the bullpen, a sore spot for San Francisco in 2007.