St. Louis Cardinals Reportedly Host Japanese Reliever Yuki Matsui on Free Agent Visit
Japanese closer Yuki Matsui visited the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday, MLB.com's Mark Feinsand reported Friday.
Matsui, who recently turned 28 years old, is not subject to the international posting system thanks to his 10 years of service with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball. He declared his intentions of entering MLB free agency in October.
Matsui began his career as a starter at 18 years old, but he moved to the bullpen before the end of his rookie year. The southpaw boasts a 2.43 ERA, 1.107 WHIP, 12.0 strikeouts per nine innings and 236 saves since making his professional debut in 2014.
In April, Matsui became the youngest player in NPB history to reach 200 career saves.
Measuring 5-foot-8 with a fastball that sits between 91 and 93 miles per hour, Matsui does not fit the mold of a traditional American closer. He tossed 1.0 scoreless inning for Team Japan at the World Baseball Classic in March, but he reportedly struggled to adjust to the MLB ball during the tournament.
However, Matsui has earned high marks for his forkball and slider, easing some of the concerns about his fastball velocity. Matsui has also routinely been among NPB's leaders in strikeout percentage, and he just posted a career-best 5.9% walk percentage this season.
The Cardinals have used right-handers Ryan Helsley and Giovanny Gallegos as their closers the past two years. Helsley has 33 saves with a 1.69 ERA and 0.859 WHIP in that time, while Gallegos has 24 saves with a 3.71 ERA and 1.105 WHIP.
Jordan Hicks was also a regular high-leverage option for the club before they traded him to the Toronto Blue Jays in July.
Adding Matsui would give the Cardinals a left-hander with plenty of experience in the late innings, regardless of whether or not he would take over as their full-time closer.
St. Louis isn't the only team interested in Matsui, though.
The New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs were among the teams to watch Matsui pitch in September, per Yahoo Japan, while the San Diego Padres visited him in October. Matsui is represented by WME's Brian Minniti, who was previously an assistant general manager with the Philadelphia Phillies, Arizona Diamondbacks and Washington Nationals.
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