April 6, 2007 Red Sox 4, Royals 1 On Cold Day, Matsuzaka Justifies Hot-Stove Hype By JACK CURRY KANSAS CITY, Mo., April 5 — The hype about Daisuke Matsuzaka’s pitching has been percolating for months. The questions have been looming, too. Who is this immensely talented pitcher? How successful will he be with the Boston Red Sox? Did the Red Sox invest $103 million wisely? On a frigid day when the occasional peeks of sun were mere teases, the answers to those questions began flowing. They came fast and emphatically, like Matsuzaka’s never-ending collection of pitches. He throws hard, he throws with a purpose and he pitches with a swagger. Matsuzaka, who is a legend in Japan, played the part of a legend in the making in the United States in a 4-1 victory Thursday against the Kansas City Royals. It was only one start against a feeble team that, for some odd reason, rested three of its veteran hitters. But there were signs, lots of signs, that Matsuzaka will be a special pitcher over here, too. The statistics showed that Matsuzaka tossed seven innings, struck out 10, walked 1 and allowed a run on 6 hits. Beyond the numbers, Matsuzaka’s 95-mile-an-hour fastball, sweet slider and perhaps a half-dozen other pitches showed that he could be Boston’s new ace. “The expectations, from what I’ve heard so far, are unreachable,” Red Sox Manager Terry Francona said. “He’s got this thing figured out better than anybody else. He loves to pitch. He enjoys the heck out of the game. And he ’s pretty darn good.” Darn good and darn confident. After Matsuzaka performed splendidly in a game that was broadcast live in Japan at 3:10 a.m. and was covered by more than 200 reporters, including 125 from Japanese outlets, he spoke about it as if it were simply an extension of a bullpen session. “As far as today, it’s a day I’ve been waiting for for a long time,” Matsuzaka said through an interpreter. “But, even given that fact, it felt surprisingly normal.” So for Matsuzaka, normal is throwing multiple pitches for strikes, thus disrupting hitters’ adjustments. Normal is being fearless about throwing breaking pitches when he is behind in the count. Normal is never sweating or at least never letting anyone see him perspire. “He threw everything today,” said Royals center fielder David DeJesus, who had a home run and a single against Matsuzaka in three at-bats. “I saw lot of different stuff when I was up there. I don’t know what to call them.” The temperature at Kauffman Stadium was 36 degrees for the first pitch, but Matsuzaka said he was not bothered by the conditions. He threw first-pitch strikes to 19 of 26 batters. He struck out the side on 14 pitches in the fourth inning and whiffed four of the last six batters he opposed. He left runners in scoring position in three innings. Matsuzaka, who has long been immune to pitch counts, threw 108 pitches, a modest amount for him. Still, Matsuzaka’s debut could have been tarnished in the sixth. DeJesus belted a fastball over the right-field fence to trim Boston’s lead to 2-1. When DeJesus was asked what pitch he had hit, he showed that he knew about the story of Matsuzaka by joking, “I think it was a gyroball.” Does DeJesus even know what a gyroball, the breaking pitch that might be mythical, looks like? “I know a gyro is a Greek sandwich,” he said. Esteban Germán followed DeJesus’s shot with a single, and Matsuzaka paced a little behind the mound. Matsuzaka struck out Mark Teahen on a 3-2 pitch, and Jason Varitek nabbed Germán trying to steal second on a close play. Varitek even acknowledged, “We got a good call at second.” When Emil Brown doubled, most of the 23,170 fans howled in protest because Germán would have scored the tying run. Instead, Matsuzaka struck out his fellow rookie Alex Gordon with another 95 m.p.h. fastball. Matsuzaka rumbled back to the warm dugout, where he was welcomed with high-fives and where he obviously belonged. “I don’t think this organization bid money on a hope,” Boston third baseman Mike Lowell said. There will be greater challenges than the Royals for Matsuzaka, who did not have to face Mike Sweeney, Mark Grudzielanek or Reggie Sanders. Matsuzaka said the expectations surrounding him had delighted him and seemed “a bit extreme.” His next assignment will be his first start at Fenway Park, on Wednesday, against his countryman Ichiro Suzuki and the Seattle Mariners. With Red Sox fans getting their first glimpse of Matsuzaka and Matsuzaka probably throwing his first pitch in Boston to Suzuki, Matsuzaka’s second start could be more pressure-filled than his first. Matsuzaka said that he was “very much looking forward” to pitching to Suzuki, but he is unlikely to be unnerved by the attention. Matsuzaka is accustomed to being a star. Ever since Matsuzaka, 26, dominated the prestigious Koshien, a high school tournament in Japan, nine years ago, he has been scrutinized, dissected and analyzed. There were close to 100 reporters blanketing the dugout Thursday to get videotape or photographs of him merely ascending the steps on his way to do stretching exercises. For now, the early questions have partial answers. Who is this talented pitcher? He may be the best on the Red Sox. How successful will he be? It is one start, but he looks superb. Did the Red Sox invest $103 million wisely? So far, they did. --

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