A first-place vote in the rookie of the year balloting is worth 5 points. Hideki Matsui missed winning the award yesterday by a smaller margin than that.

In the closest vote in 24 years, Kansas City Royals shortstop Angel Berroa edged Matsui, the Yankees' left fielder, by 4 points to win the American League award. Florida Marlins pitcher Dontrelle Willis, the only player in either league named on every ballot, won the National League award by 37 points.

Matsui starred in Japan's Central League for 10 years before signing with the Yankees last winter. Members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America vote on the awards, and two writers left Matsui off their ballots, citing Matsui's previous experience.

''It had everything to do with that,'' said Bill Ballou of The Worcester (Mass.) Telegram and Gazette, who listed Tampa Bay outfielder Rocco Baldelli first, Cleveland outfielder Jody Gerut second and Berroa third. ''Matsui's numbers are comparable to any of the other strong candidates. But I really think that while he is technically a rookie by the rules of Major League Baseball, he is not a rookie in the spirit of the award.''