Hideki Matsui waiting for offer

According to this tweet from Mark Feinstad of the New York Daily News, former New York Yankees slugger Hideki Matsui is not close to signing anywhere and will have to wait until teams contact him during Spring Training (when they realize they have more needs than they thought).

At this point, it’s fair to look at what “Godzilla” can offer to a club. He’ll have to DH, because his defense will obviously cost teams. It will be tough for Hideki Matsui to be worth much, because it is difficult for a designated hitter to have high value without defense and such.

Last season, Matsui was worth 0.3 WAR, and he will be worth about that much again in 2012. The problem with Hideki Matsui is that his bat is only average right now, and that isn’t helpful for a DH. Positional adjustment is harsh- rightfully so- on these players, which will make it difficult for him to be worth much with only an average offensive output for a team.

Right now, Hideki Matsui should get a one-year deal worth $1.3 million with a maximum of $1 million in incentives. He could end up in a platoon against lefties only, which would definitely help his value (difference of 36 wRC+ between lefties and rigties last season) even if it suppresses his at-bats.

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