Top > Sport > 2006 > November > 2006-11-15

Red Sox lead in the bid for Matsuzaka

The wild and pricey chase after Japanese star right-handed pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka has reportedly come to an end, and the leader in acquiring the rights in the MLB to open in talks with the coveted player are the Boston Red Sox. The sox are in need of strengthening their thinning line-up, and Matsuzaka`s arm is targeted to help them do so.

The commissioner`s office of the Major League Baseball and the Nippon Professional Baseball, have orchestrated the bids between Matsuzaka`s current team, the Seibu Lions and the interested baseball teams from north America. The reported winning team, the Red Sox, will have 30 days to finalize a deal with the player that will be accepted on the lions or else lose the rights.

The rights for the Most Valuable Player of Japan`s first World Baseball Classic earlier in the year are believed to have topped $20 million. ESPN said that Boston`s bid was as much as $42 million. Ichiro Suzuki`s rights, which wre bought by the Seattle Mariners in 2001, in comparison, were purchased for "only" $13.1 million.