The 103 Million Dollar Game?
Back before the 2007 baseball season began, the Red Sox were a team in disarray. They had just finished third in their division and out of the playoffs and were seemingly reverting to their losing ways before 2004. To keep the team from seeming complacent, the management opted to spend money and improve the team. The most talked about move, of course, was the signing of Daisuke Matsuzaka. After paying over fifty-one million dollars just to talk to him, the Red Sox then dished out an additional fifty-two million to get him in uniform.
For those who can’t add, or don’t want to, that sums up to 103 million dollars. For a player who had never thrown a single pitch in the majors before.
Ridiculous? Maybe a little. But Daisuke had the natural skills and hype to justify the move. And his first season, while it was more of a roller coaster than the consistent success teams want, was pretty good. Fifteen wins with over two-hundred strikeouts is not a bad thing from the third pitcher in a rotation.
But now, with his team tied 3-3 in the ALCS, Daisuke has to prove he was worth the money, worth the hype. It may not be fair to put this much pressure on a first-year starter. But when you play for a team in the majors, in a city like Boston, and for a team like the Red Sox, that is what you should expect.
So now we get to see. Did the Bo-Sox pay over a hundred million dollars for a pitcher that took them to the World Series? Or did they overpay for a player who wasn’t as ready for the show as everyone thought he was?
Either way, game seven is must-watch television for any fan of baseball.
