Empyreal Environs

I took the ESPN poll on Daisuke Matsuzaka just now. Here are the results as of 7:35 AM with 40,875 respondents. My fangirl-tainted responses are in bolded text. Note that I’m not completely alone; Clay Davenport and Christina Kahrl of Baseball Prospectus are believers and Jim Callis of Baseball America has stated that Matsuzaka would be his choice for the number one prospect in all of baseball.

1) Is it worth $51.1 million just to negotiate with Matsuzaka?

72.1% No
27.9% Yes

2) Will Matsuzaka sign with the Red Sox?

83.3% Yes
16.7% No

3) If you were Theo Epstein, how much would you offer Matsuzaka per year?

33.9% $10 million-$11 million
28.7% $12 million-$13 million
22.9% Less than $10 million
9.2% $14 million-$15 million
5.3% More than $15 million

4) Matsuzaka has a career 2.95 ERA in eight years with the Seibu Lions. How will he fare against MLB hitters?

50.5% Worse than his career average
43.0% About equivalent to his career average
6.5% Better than his career average

5) Should the Red Sox try to trade Matsuzaka to fill their pressing needs at shortstop, right field, second base, and in the bullpen?

74.8% No
25.2% Yes

6) Will Matsuzaka have trouble adjusting to cultural differences between Japan and the U.S.?

56.8% Yes, but it won't affect his pitching
24.4% No
18.8% Yes, and it will affect his pitching

7) If the Red Sox are able to sign Matsuzaka, how will they fare in 2007?

36.8% AL wild-card winner
22.0% Reach World Series
18.6% Miss playoffs
15.7% AL East champion
6.9% AL champion

8) Who will be Boston's best starting pitcher in 2007?

30.2% Jonathan Papelbon
25.6% Curt Schilling
22.9% Daisuke Matsuzaka
21.3% Josh Beckett

9) Asian players such as Ichiro Suzuki, Tadahito Iguchi, and Chien-Ming Wang have made a huge impact on major league rosters. Is Asia the next untapped resource of All-Star talent?

79.6% Yes
20.4% No

Total Votes: 40,875