Like the United States, Japan has its own baseball royalty, and the princes are high school players drafted by the Yomiuri Giants. Being chosen by the hallowed Giants — Japan’s equivalent of the Yankees, the Lakers and the Cowboys combined — does not guarantee success. But the princes who succeed on and off the field are all but certain to be anointed kings.

Some of Japan’s most beloved players include Shigeo Nagashima, Sadaharu Oh and Tatsunori Hara, who all starred for the Giants and later managed the team. Hara just guided the Giants to their 22nd championship, easily the most in Japanese baseball.

Hideki Matsui was destined to follow them. After a stellar high school career, Matsui was chosen by the Giants and made his debut in 1993 to much fanfare. His powerful bat earned him the nickname Godzilla, and he wore No. 55, a nod to Oh’s single-season home run record. Under intense scrutiny, he lived up to the billing, hitting 332 homers in 10 seasons. He led the Giants to three titles, including in 2002, when he was won the Most Valuable Player award.

It was his swan song in Japan. Matsui, the humble country boy who gave his all, who never raised a fuss and made grandmothers across the country proud, became a free agent and joined the Yankees the next year. Japan was torn. He was at the height of his powers, yet he headed to New York to play on baseball’s biggest stage.