Former MLB corner outfielder Matt Murton hit .286/.352/.436 in his 1,058 plate, 354 games for the Cubs, Rockies, and A’s. However, the 2003 first round pick never made it in the big leagues. But in Japan he’s hitting .349 with 17 home runs and 88 RBIs. He’s not only big in Japan, he’s historically huge in Japan.
According to Chicago Breaking Sports.com
Murton lined a single into center field for his 210th hit of the season with the Hanshin Tigers, tying Ichiro Suzuki’s record for hits in a season. Murton has three more games in which to break it.
Based on Randy Bass being denied a chance to break Sadaharu Oh’s home run record, some wondered if Murton would get a chance to pass Ichiro. The question now shifts to whether he’ll get an asterisk, as the Japanese season has been lengthened from 130 to 144 games. Murton has played 141 games, 11 more than Ichiro did when he set the record in 1994.
The redhead has been embraced by the Hanshin fans. Murton told the Sankei Sports Shimbun he has been surprised by how his achievement has been handled. “I wanted to show my appreciation to the fans and my teammates who have supported me all year,” he said, “but I never thought they would be that excited for me. All I want to do is win the rest of the way.”
Here’s more on Murton from NBC Sports Hardball Talk
After spending most of last season at Triple-A he headed to Japan, signing with the Hanshin Tigers, and yesterday Murton became just the fourth player in Japanese history to reach 200 hits in a season…However, as Daisuke Wakabayashi of the Wall Street Journal points out “there are past examples of Japanese pitchers refusing to challenge foreign players who are close to breaking Japanese baseball records.”