Sleeper Watch

After months of speculation (Will he come or won’t he? Where will he land?), Kazuo Matsui has signed on the dotted line and will join the Mets in 2004 - and unlike last year’s aborted signing of Norihiro Nakamura, this time, it’s final. Now, the only thing that remains to be seen is how well the former Pacific League star will perform in New York.

Matsui (no relation to the Yankees’ Hideki), a seven-time All Star in Japan, has all the skills to succeed, combining speed, pop, and a fantastic batting eye (306 career sb, 150 hr, .309 avg in nine seasons). Last year, Japan’s top shortstop performed well, slugging 33 home runs and hitting .305, but only swiped a career-low 13 bases. Nonetheless, it’s his speed that is more likely to make him a fantasy asset than his power, especially now that he’ll be calling Shea Stadium home. Ichiro himself has claimed that Matsui is the faster of the two players; whether or not that’s the case, Matsui should provide his owners with a generous amount of steals.

The switch-hitter should also be able to post a very respectable average, but expecting him to be the five-category contributor he was in Japan might be asking too much, as both the transition to the majors and his home field will dampen his home run totals. His strikeout numbers (124 last season) might also reduce his value in some scoring formats, although his slick fielding will help in others. His value definitely depends on your league’s rules, but particularly in roto ball, Kazuo Matsui could become a very valuable asset at a traditionally tough-to-fill position.