松坂の記事ばかり

スポニチより抜粋。
・松坂７回３失点●イチローは抑える
・城島好リード　打っては２二塁打
・松坂ねぎらう恩師「いつもより仏頂面に」
・マリナーズの２１歳　松坂に投げ勝つ
　ベネズエラ出身で一昨年大リーグデビューし、昨年は１２勝（１４敗）を挙げた。今季は開幕投手に選ばれ、２日のアスレチックス戦では８回１２奪三振無失点の快投。大雪による試合中止が続き、中８日の登板と間隔が開いたが、連続無失点を１７イニングに伸ばして松坂に投げ勝った。
・注目の対戦　松坂に軍配も初黒星喫す
・イチロー　このままでは終わらない　　
　「今日はいろんな意味でビッグゲーム。こういうときになかなか自分を表現できないのはストレスですね」。今後も対戦は続く。このままで終わるつもりはさらさらない。
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７回で３失点は合格点。レッドソックスの強打線なら、５点は軽く取れる。次回は必ず勝つ！

松坂の相手投手が凄かった

MLB HPより抜粋。
It was a spectacle, for sure, with a flash-bulb record undoubtedly set for a batter-pitcher matchup in April. In other words, who could have possibly predicted that Daisuke Matsuzaka's Fenway Park debut, which started with the much-anticipated showdown with Ichiro Suzuki, could have possibly been overshadowed by anything?

Mariners phenom Felix Hernandez was so powerful atop the Fenway Park mound on Wednesday night that he captured the spotlight -- if not the camera flashes -- en route to a masterful one-hitter. Only a J.D. Drew single to lead off the eighth prevented Hernandez from tossing a no-hitter in what wound up a 3-0 Seattle victory over Matsuzaka and the Red Sox.

"He had the best stuff I have seen in the last five or six years," Sox slugger David Ortiz said of Hernandez. "He could have a career like you couldn't even imagine. Nolan Ryan. Pedro Martinez. Curt Schilling. He could have a career like that if he takes care of himself."

The Red Sox have a pitcher who has gotten similar lofty comparisons in recent weeks. But Matsuzaka, who was solid but not overpowering, knew that his margin for error was just about nonexistent against a pitcher the caliber of Hernandez.

"Of course, he's the ace of the Mariners and I felt very strongly that I didn't want them to get the go-ahead run," said Matsuzaka. "Once I allowed that first run to score, I felt very strongly that I couldn't let any more runs in after that point."

In his Fenway unveiling, Matsuzaka scattered eight hits and three runs over seven innings, walking one and striking out four. This, after a Major League debut in which he stifled the Royals to the tune of 10 strikeouts and one run over seven frames.

"I think we're hyping him up so much that when he gives up three runs, it's like, 'Oh my God.' I think he did a pretty good job," said Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell. "That's a pretty good lineup. He did OK. He gave us a chance to win. Three runs over seven innings, I'll take that."

Matsuzaka tried to take it all in during what was admittedly an emotion-filled night.

"With the great welcome I received from the fans here being at home, I got the sense early on that I finally arrived here in Boston," Matsuzaka said. "So at the very beginning, my psychological state may have been different, a little bit heightened compared to usual. But I wouldn't say that was a bad thing."

Amid a sea of flash bulbs on every pitch to start the game, Matsuzaka retired fellow Japanese icon Ichiro on a crisp hopper back to the box. Lowell was able to exhale from third base.

"Oh yeah, I could feel the flash bulbs, too," said Lowell. "I didn't want Ichiro to hit me a ball because I wouldn't be able to see the [darn] thing. I mean, there were so many bulbs going off. I said, 'Hopefully, he hits a ground ball, because if it's [a liner] right at me, I'm going to be seeing stars.' It was pretty cool. You had two of the best players from Japan facing off against each other, it's not something you see every day."

Matsuzaka ran into some legitimate trouble in the second. Jose Guillen stroked a one-out single to left and Kenji Johjima followed with a double to left. That set Yuniesky Betancourt up for a sacrifice fly to left.

Not that anybody knew it at the time, but that 1-0 deficit pretty much ended any chance the Red Sox had.

"It was a night there was no room for error," said Red Sox manager Terry Francona. "You know, the way Hernandez was throwing, you have to put up zeroes or you're in trouble."

But the Mariners began flexing their muscles again in the fifth. Jose Lopez got things started with a one-out single to right. The big hit of the inning came from Adrian Beltre, who walloped an RBI double to center. Jose Vidro followed with an RBI single and the Mariners had a 3-0 lead.

Not only were the Red Sox in a three-run hole, but they were positively helpless against Hernandez. In fact, Hernandez looked like a man on a mission, leaving the Red Sox increasingly bewildered with each passing inning.

Matsuzaka ended his 103-pitch night by making a terrific scoop at first base in completing a 3-6-1 double play off the bat of Vidro.

Despite the quality start, Matsuzaka's press conference took on an almost apologetic tone.

"Yesterday during the [Opening Day] ceremonies, when my name was called, I was given a grand welcome by the fans here," Matsuzaka said. "It gave me goose bumps. I wanted to respond to that great welcome in kind. Same thing today when my name was called. I received a big ovation and I felt again that I wanted to respond to the fan's welcome. I was disappointed that I wasn't able to respond to them in kind."

It's just that there was no response for Hernandez on Wednesday night. There was nothing Matsuzaka or anyone else could have done about that.

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昨年の今頃は、ヘルナンデスが松坂の立場にあった。松坂の相手が悪かったとしか言いようがない。

Showdown Time - 松坂vs.イチロー

SI.comより抜粋。
Here at this sacred baseball cathedral that lies more than 6,700 miles from Tokyo, there is a Dunkin' Donuts sign above the outfield bleachers with the words "Welcome to Fenway" written in Japanese, sushi being served in the media dining room, and 150 giddy members of the Japanese press crammed into the media quarters.

How huge will the Ichiro-Dice K rumble be in Japan, where it'll be 8:05 a.m. when the two Japanese megastars face off during the first pitch of tonight's Red Sox-Mariners game? On the eve of baseball's answer to Ali-Frazier, Ichiro, the right fielder who Japanese reporters privately describe as almost always aloof and often arrogant, considered the question and scoffed, "I'm in America. Please ask someone in Japan."

Make no mistake: Ichiro knows. He knows that this event is, as Japanese freelance sportswriter Hideki Okuda described to me, "historic." He knows that many of his country's most prominent journalists have converged upon Fenway. He knows that the world will be watching to see if he fails as miserably as he did eight years ago, when he was the best hitter in Japan, and Daisuke Matsuzaka, an 18-year-old, baby-faced phenom fresh out of high school, struck him out three consecutive times. "I was somewhat unsure of myself before, but now my confidence has become a conviction," Matsuzaka proclaimed after the feat.

Ichiro knows that Matsuzaka has been waiting for this moment. "When he first signed the contract with the Red Sox, Matsuzaka said, 'I am looking forward to facing Ichiro,'" says Okuda. "He didn't even mention [Hideki] Matsui's name. He didn't even mention [Kenji] Johjima's name. He only said Ichiro's name."

Ichiro knows that this one game is an opportunity to re-establish himself as his country's biggest star. The six-time All-Star, who last faced Matsuzaka seven years ago in Japan as a member of the Orix Blue Wave (in 10 games he went 8-for-34 against the right-hander), loves the spotlight. "It's been a long time [since] Ichiro has played in such a big game," says another Japanese reporter. "Of course he doesn't want to embarrass himself again. And yes, maybe he is a little jealous of the attention Matsuzaka is getting. Right now, Matsuzaka may be the biggest name in Japan."

Although Ichiro's relationship with Yankees left fielder Matsui is icy at best, the Mariners star and Matsuzaka have become close friends since they were teammates during last year's World Baseball Classic. This spring they lunched together in Japan, and since then they've often talked over the phone. Ichiro, though, insists he hadn't watched any video of Matsuzaka's seven-inning, 10-strikeout performance against the Royals last Thursday. "It's been such a long time ago [since facing Matsuzaka] that I don't remember many things," he said on Tuesday.

After the Red Sox's batting practice on Tuesday, Matsuzaka sought out his rival and friend, who was playing catch near third base. "Ichiro-san," the Boston ace called out. The two nodded to each other, shook hands and laughed. A mob of Japanese photographers raced across the field to document the moment.

The scene will be even crazier today, when 170 members of the Japanese media are expected at Fenway. Over 125 Japanese news outlets covered Matsuzaka's debut in Kansas City, and the top sports paper in the country, Nikkan Sports, has been running daily stories on the Ichiro-Dice K duel. A headline in its April 7 edition read: "It's the rematch with the genius we've all been waiting for."

At last, the moment is here, and both Ichiro and Matsuzaka know: The baseball world will be watching.

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日本人選手の紹介には必ず、どこかに寿司が出てくるのは、米国人の偏見だ。

MLB 名勝負９番

ESPNより抜粋。
１．Roger Clemens vs. Mike Piazza, 2000 World Series
２．Juan Marichal vs. John Roseboro, April 3, 1966
３．Bobby Thomson vs. Ralph Branca, April 19, 1952
４．Reggie Jackson vs. Bob Welch, 1978 World Series
５．Larry Walker vs. Randy Johnson, 1997 All-Star Game
６．Tony Conigliaro vs. Dave McNally, April 8, 1969
７．Shawn Estes vs. Roger Clemens, June 15, 2002
８．Hideo Nomo vs. Ichiro Suzuki, May 2, 2001
The setup: It's Golden Week in Japan, and vacationing baseball fans are either tuned to their TV sets for the live broadcast or inspired to make the trip to Seattle to see two national treasures in action. It's Nomo pitching for Boston against Ichiro, on his way to capturing the MVP award and the Rookie of the Year for Lou Piniella's Seattle squad.

The payoff: Things begin uneventfully when Ichiro grounds out and flies out in his first two plate appearances. In the fifth inning, Nomo loses control of a cut fastball and drills Ichiro in the back between the numbers. Ichiro drops to his knees and needs several moments to regain his breath before taking first base.

"I didn't think it was any different than any other game," Mariners catcher Tom Lampkin tells ESPN.com writer Jim Caple. "But there are probably 10 million people in Japan who thought differently."

９．Jose Mesa vs. Omar Vizquel, April 22, 2006

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８番目に野茂vs.イチローあり。クレメンスも２つ、ジョンソンも１つあり。

松坂vs.イチロー

ESPNより抜粋。

It's hard to tell who's more excited over Daisuke Matsuzaka's Fenway Park debut -- millions of baseball fans in Japan or the dozens of neighborhood parking lot proprietors who'll be raking in all that yen.

The last time Boston hyperventilated this much over a ballgame, Pedro Martinez was grabbing Don Zimmer's bald head and flinging him to the ground.

The media crush, euphoric scalpers and electricity in the air are testaments to Matsuzaka's impact on this city. But that's only the beginning: Matsuzaka's first pitch to the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday night will be to Japanese countryman, .331 career hitter and six-time All-Star Ichiro Suzuki. Does it get any better than that?

Which got us thinking: Through the course of baseball history, have any other pitcher-batter confrontations generated light and heat of this magnitude? In the opening installment of "Starting Nine," we bring you nine encounters that were buzz-worthy, whether for previous bad blood, media hype or all-around historical significance:

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これは過去の名勝負を紹介する記事で、松坂vs.イチローは枕詞になっている。

将棋：郷田九段が先勝 名人戦第１局

毎日より抜粋。
第１局は１１日午後１１時９分、１１９手で挑戦者の郷田真隆九段（３６）が森内俊之名人（３６）に勝ち、先勝した。第２局は２４、２５日、鳥取県湯梨浜町の望湖楼で行われる。

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佐藤康光、丸山、藤井らと並び、二人とも羽生世代の生き残り棋士。森内よりも郷田の方が堂々として、名人の風格がある。今回は郷田を応援。