Afternoon Delight: Dice-K looks to dazzle again

At times he’s been a superstar. At times he’s been mediocre. But no matter what, Daisuke Matsuzaka has been interesting.

The Kaibutsu has had plenty of hype, and he’s reached it in a lot of different categories, good and bad.

For a pitcher who entered with enough hype to nauseate two different countries, Dice-K has a lot to live up to. At times he’s done it. He dazzled in a complete game shutout of Detroit. His mastery of San Francisco and Barry Bonds at Fenway was nearly as entrancing.

But for all the positives and gains, there have been the shaky starts. The four-run nightmare innings. The moments when his butt waggle and comforting nod at Jason Varitek can’t bridge what seems to be a much larger misunderstanding between his hand and a baseball that still feels a little too large.

His record speaks to his new reality. Matsuzaka is 12-6. That’s a .666 winning percentage for those of you keeping track at home, and he pulls a decision in most games he starts because, well, he tends to keep chucking pitches out there when he starts. Despite claims of concern from agent Scott Boras and what might be construed (and definitely has been construed in the Japanese media) as minor coddling from Terry Francona and pitching coach John Farrell, he still seems to reach the mound expecting to hit 100 pitches and then keep firing every time he’s on the mound.

So far the adjustment to a five-man rotation hasn’t really been a huge speedbump. The adjustments in off-day workouts were rocky, but since have made him look almost over-prepared. He seems to be reaching a comfort level. The question becomes whether that’s comforting because of his success in overcoming the cultural and physical baseball differences between the U.S. and Japan, or whether that’s a concern, because his current incarnation isn’t quite Nolan Ryan meets Greg Maddux, as he has envisioned himself.

You think you can handle the pressure? You think you can handle the hype? You think you can handle this idiot parodying your existence? Welcome to the world of Dice-K my friend.

Today, Matsuzaka gets a one-time American wunderkind: former Mets uber-prospect Scott Kazmir. Kazmir has had a hit-and-miss season at the Trop, but he has one very consistent career truth: He owns the Red Sox. Today, he’ll try and own Matsuzaka, too.

That means that today will be a good chance for Dice-K to show just how comfortable he is. It’s a chance to show he can dazzle his way down the stretch.

It’s a chance to show that he will be an ace when his team needs him. Here goes nothing.

– Cameron Smith