Hideki Matsui was introduced Friday night in Japan as the new Hideki Matsui Yomiuri Giants manager, taking over the Central League club he once powered as an outfielder from 1993 through 2002. The appointment returns the former left-handed slugger to the franchise where his professional career began and where he became one of Nippon Professional Baseball’s most feared hitters.
How the Giants' Managerial Job Opened
Shinnosuke Abe resigned as Giants manager in May 2026 following an arrest. Details of that arrest were not specified. Hideki Hashigami, a former Giants player, then served as interim manager for the remainder of the 2026 season. Matsui’s introduction on Friday night fills the vacancy on a permanent basis.
Matsui's Giants Playing Career
Before his move to Major League Baseball, Matsui spent ten seasons with Yomiuri and compiled numbers that made him a franchise icon. He hit 332 home runs and drove in 889 runs with a .304/.413/.582 slash line. The Giants won Nippon Series titles in 1994, 2000 and 2002, and Matsui was named Nippon Series MVP in 2000.
His final season with the Giants, 2002, was among his most productive: 50 home runs and a .692 slugging percentage. Matsui wore No. 55 in those years, the same number later associated with Sadaharu Oh, who holds the Giants’ franchise record with 868 home runs.
From Yomiuri to the New York Yankees
Matsui joined the New York Yankees for the 2003 season on a three-year, $21 million contract at age 29. His MLB debut season produced 106 RBIs and a .287 average, and he was an All-Star in each of his first two seasons. From 2003 through 2005, he played every Yankees game. In 2004 he set career highs with 31 home runs and 108 RBIs.
That same year, the Yankees lost a 3-0 lead in the American League Championship Series to the Boston Red Sox. Matsui’s postseason performance in 2004 included three home runs, 13 RBIs and a .412/.456/.765 slash line. Injuries in 2006 and 2008 eventually pushed him into a primary designated hitter role.
2009 World Series MVP
Matsui’s defining MLB moment came in the 2009 World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies. He went 8 for 13 with three home runs and eight RBIs, producing a 1.385 slugging percentage. In the Game 6 clincher, he drove in six runs. The performance earned him World Series MVP honors.
Later MLB Stops and a Return to Japan
After the 2009 season, Matsui played for the Los Angeles Angels in 2010, the Oakland Athletics in 2011 and the Tampa Bay Rays in 2012. His playing career wound down in MLB, but his roots remained in Japan. Now, more than two decades after his last game with the Giants, he returns to the dugout as their manager.
