Listen to me, Detroit! The ink is barely dry on the minor league contract the Tigers just handed to international amateur pitcher Yodo Matsumoto out of Japan, and the so-called experts are already sleeping on him. They look at a standard international signing and see a project. I look at this kid and see the undisputed ace of the Detroit Tigers rotation!

You think the front office just brought him over to toil away in the low minors and see what sticks? Wrong! My gut is screaming at a frequency that shatters glass, and it’s telling me that Matsumoto is going to be the most dominant arm this franchise has seen in a generation. I am planting the flag right here, right now: within three years, Yodo Matsumoto is going to win the American League Cy Young Award.

I don’t care that he’s unproven. I don’t care that the scouting reports are still being translated. Instinct doesn’t lie, and my instinct says this kid is going to strike out the side on nine pitches in his major league debut. The baseball world is going to spend the next thirty-six months trying to figure out his mechanics, while we in Detroit just sit back and watch him carve up the league.

They’ll call me crazy today. They’ll say you can’t predict a Cy Young from a guy who just signed a minor league deal out of Japan. But when Matsumoto is standing on the mound holding that hardware, you better remember who told you first. Frame this column, Detroit! The Matsumoto era starts today, and it ends with a parade!

Notebook

2051-04-03

  • [G]Released by the New York organization.
  • [G]Released by the Los Angeles organization.
  • Optioned C Nick Cuyler to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned 2B Guo-liang Thean to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned CF Juan Medina to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned 3B Keyon Ferguson to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned SP Sang-yeon Kim to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned SP Jose Gonzalez to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned SP Omar Ramirez to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned RP Edward Pineda to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned C Nick Cuyler to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned 2B Guo-liang Thean to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned CF Juan Medina to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned 3B Keyon Ferguson to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned SP Sang-yeon Kim to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned SP Jose Gonzalez to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned SP Omar Ramirez to Triple A Toledo.
  • Optioned RP Edward Pineda to Triple A Toledo.
  • Demoted SP Jose Gonzalez from Triple A Toledo to Double A Erie.
  • Demoted SP Robby Flores from Triple A Toledo to Double A Erie.
  • Demoted SP Sang-yeon Kim from Triple A Toledo to Double A Erie.
  • Demoted SP David Duran from Triple A Toledo to Double A Erie.
  • Placed SP Enreecko Puzon on the Eastern League 7-day injured list, retroactive to 03/31/2051.
  • Promoted SS Elijah Duff from Double A Erie to Triple A Toledo.
  • Promoted RP Ismael Serrano from Low-A Lakeland to High-A West Michigan.
  • Promoted RP Nate Williams from Low-A Lakeland to High-A West Michigan.
  • Promoted C David Matthews from Low-A Lakeland to High-A West Michigan.
  • Demoted C Danny Valdez from High-A West Michigan to Low-A Lakeland.
  • Promoted 1B Alex Camacho from Low-A Lakeland to High-A West Michigan.

2051-04-06

  • [I]Injured (patellar tendinitis),out for 2 weeks.
  • [I]Injured (mild hamstring strain),day-to-day for one week.

2051-04-07

  • [I]Injured (hyperextended ankle),day-to-day for one week.
  • [I]Injured (sprained thumb),day-to-day for 4 weeks.
  • [I]Injured (mild calf strain),day-to-day for 2 days.
  • [I]Injured (hamstring soreness),day-to-day for 3 days.
  • RP Jon Oviedo was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: mild calf strain. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last 2 days.

2051-04-08

  • [I]Injured (sore thumb),day-to-day for 1 day.
  • [I]Injured (back stiffness),day-to-day for 3 days.
  • [A]Goes 5-6 against the Jupiter Hammerheads, with 1 2B, 3 RBI and 4 R.

2051-04-09

  • [G]Signed a minor league contract out of Dominican Republic with the Detroit Tigers organization.
  • [I]Injured (back spasms),day-to-day for 2 days.
  • Signed international amateur SP Jose Herrera out of Dominican Republic to a minor league contract.

2051-04-10

  • [G]Signed a 1-year minor league contract extension with the San Diego Padres organization.