Daisuke Matsuzaka to return to Japan, sign with Fukuoka

Right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka is returning to Japan after spending eight seasons in the major leagues, according to a report from The Japan Times. The Fukuoka Softbank Hawks have expressed a serious interest in signing the free agent to bolster their rotation even after winning the Japan Series this past year.

Matsuzaka brought plenty of media attention to the United States when he first signed with the Boston Red Sox, after the team paid a $51 million posting fee to the pitcher’s former NPB team, the Seibu Lions. At the time it marked a record-high for a posting fee, elevating the expectations and fanfare that followed.

He got off to a decent start in the majors, posting a 15-12 record and 4.40 ERA in 204.2 IP. The numbers weren’t glamorous against his salary and fanfare, but he’d follow that up with the best season of his career. In 2008 he’d go 18-3 with a 2.90 ERA over 167.2 IP.

That season ended with an injury to his rotator cuff, marking the start of a series of events to come over the coming years. Matsuzaka would never be an effective starting pitcher at the big league level again. He’d go 16-15 with a 5.03 ERA over the next three seasons before undergoing Tommy John surgery.

With his Boston contract ending with the 2012 season, Matsuzaka signed a minor league deal with the Cleveland Indians that offseason but he didn’t make it back to the majors with them, allowing him to sign with the New York Mets. For the next two seasons, he primarily pitched out of the Mets bullpen, showing flashes of the brilliance that once made him among the best pitchers in Japan.

Matsuzaka, 34, finishes his MLB career with a 56-43 record and 4.45 ERA in just short of 800 innings of work.

Matsuzaka’s former teammate with the Red Sox, Hideki Okajima, is a member of the Hawks bullpen.