Derek Jeter to join Hideki Matsui for charity baseball event in Japan
Former New York Yankees teammates Derek Jeter and Hideki Matsui will be getting together for a charity baseball event in Matsui's home country of Japan, the Associated Press reports.
Matsui held a press conference on Wednesday confirming that Jeter would be participating in the event that will benefit victims of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The pair will host a baseball clinic and also face-off in a home run derby on March 21 at the Tokyo Dome.
"(Derek) will make an enormous contribution to this event," Matsui said. "He is a tremendous human being and was a great teammate and I'm sure the kids will be thrilled to see someone of his stature."
• Ball from final out of Derek Jeter's career sold for $24,025
Matsui came over from Japan in 2003 to sign with the Yankees and he was the World Series MVP in 2009. He went on to have stints with the Angels, Athletics and Rays before retiring in November 2012. In 10 major league seasons, he had a .282 batting average, 175 home runs and 760 RBI.
Jeter retired following a 20-year career with the Yankees, winning the World Series five times.
• VERDUCCI: Ranking first-year Hall of Fame candidates
- Jack Jorgensen