Adam Rubin, ESPN Staff Writer 9y

Report: Japan club to offer Dice-K big deal

NEW YORK -- Daisuke Matsuzaka at the end of the season left open the possibility of returning to Japan, saying his priority is to return to a starting rotation.

Well, Matsuzaka appears as though he will have a lucrative opportunity to do so. The Pacific League champion Fukuoka Softbank Hawks are planning to offer Matsuzaka a four-year deal to return to his native country, Sports Hochi reports.

The offer reportedly would be worth roughly $3.58 million ($400 million yen) annually.

Bobby Abreu and Matsuzaka are the Mets' only two free agents.

Matsuzaka, 34, went 3-3 with a 3.89 ERA with one save in 34 appearances (nine starts) for the Mets in 2014.

"I want to start," Matsuzaka told ESPNNewYork.com through an intrepreter on the final day of the regular season. "But I haven't really put too much thought into whether it's going to be here or there anything. At this point I just want to start."

^ Back to Top ^