New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner says he expects Japanese slugger Hideki Matsui to deliver the goods and "have a big impact" on the club and the city.
"Too many of our scouts have said, 'He'll do it, boss,' for me (to be concerned)," Steinbrenner said in an exclusive interview with the New York Daily News, a week after Matsui agreed with the Yankees on a three-year, $21 million deal.
"I think he'll have a big impact. There's a large Japanese population in New York. We just have to be patient with him and he'll deliver," he was quoted as saying in the daily's on-line edition Sunday.
Matsui is the second Japanese star to join the Yankees during Steinbrenner's 30-year club ownership following Hideki Irabu, who was traded to the Montreal Expos after three years after his relationship with the owner turned sour.