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Hideki Matsui stretches before taking batting practice. (Chris O'Meara/AP)

Matsui attended a voluntary workout at the team's minor-league complex on Friday afternoon, joining Derek Jeter, Alfonso Soriano and Rondell White for batting practice, throwing exercises and conditioning. Jackson was one of three interested onlookers during the BP session, joining Yankees vice president of player development Mark Newman and vice president/director of minor league operations Rob Thompson.

Also watching from afar was owner George Steinbrenner, who stood down the right-field line to get a glimpse of his $21 million investment. Steinbrenner was joined by senior vice president of baseball operations Gordon Blakeley.

"I like his fundamentals and I love his swing," Jackson said. "He has good work ethic in the outfield. I like what I see. He's going to help us."

Matsui took six rounds of batting practice, hitting four home runs in 73 swings. Fans stood on the other side of the outfield fence, hoping to get a look at Matsui and maybe even catch a home run ball. At one point, after Matsui had drilled line drive after line drive, Jackson kidded him about his lack of BP homers.

"Forget about the line drives," Jackson said. "We want 'Bye Bye Baby'!"

With approximately 40 members of the Japanese press chronicling his every move, Matsui learned halfway through his workout that the Boss was watching.

Hideki Matsui   /   OF
	Height: 6'1" Weight: 210 Bats/Throws: L/R More info: Player page Stats Splits Hit chart Yankees site

With the help of a translator, Jackson spoke with Matsui about hitting and offered his take on how to handle the press.

"I told him to trust his swing, not to try to play for the press," Jackson said. "Between the New York fans, New York media, Japanese fans, Japanese media, our ownership -- and our owner's tough -- the expectations are going to be large. He doesn't need to worry because he has ability."

Matsui, 28, said that while he had never seen Jackson play when he was young, he knew all about his legendary three-home run game in the 1977 World Series.

"He told me to just trust in myself and do my best to bring out the best in myself," Matsui said.

As for the media throng that has followed him throughout Florida this week, Matsui said he didn't mind it as long as his teammates didn't.

"I'm used to it in Japan," Matsui said. "Here it's a little different, but I want to make sure that I don't cause any trouble for the other players."

Well-equipped: The Mizuno Corporation announced on Friday that the company has completed a one-year deal with Matsui that will keep the slugger as a member of the Mizuno Advisory Pro-Staff.

As part of the contract, Matsui will use Mizuno bats, gloves, cleats, batting gloves, wristbands, foot and arm guards in his first season with the Yankees. Matsui and Mizuno first entered into this type of agreement in 1995, and have continued it every year since then.

Each piece of equipment will be adorned with Mizuno's new original "Matsui" logo, which features his last name with an image of Godzilla's tail in the letters.

The deal was announced at a press conference at the Embassy Suites hotel in Tampa on Friday evening. About 70 Japanese media members attended the event, which was conducted entirely in Japanese. On the podium with Matsui were Mizuno Deputy General Manager Norifumi Kubota, as well as Isokazu Kubota, who is a master of hand-made bats.

Matsui, dressed casually in a black jacket and gray shirt, made a brief statement to the media before posing for photo opportunities with the new equipment. Matsui will work out at the Yankees' minor-league complex on Saturday morning and then shoot a commercial for Mizuno at a Tampa television studio in the afternoon.

"I have been using Mizuno baseball products since my childhood, and I am delighted to be able to continue using the products," Matsui said. "It is a pleasure, if I can assist in promoting these products. I am intending to continue focusing on my work, so I can inspire all children to do their best, since they also will be able to achieve great heights with hard work."

Matsui will test out bats made from maple, white ash and blue ash, and choose which one he wants to use for the season.

"I have shaped Mr. Matsui's bats since 1993, and I am honored to have been able to support Mr. Matsui, who has excelled so much over the years, and has won so many titles and achieved great success," said Kubota the bat-maker. "Now that Mr. Matsui has joined the Major Leagues, I myself would like to renew my resolve to assist him towards continued success."

Matsui will also contribute his opinions and advice to a regular Japanese baseball article, and Mizuno retains the rights to Matsui's likeness for advertisements and sales promotion items in Japan. Mizuno will market an entire line of "Matsui model" baseball products in Japan as well.

Mizuno's target sales for baseball products worldwide for 2003 is 34 billion yen, which translates to $283 million in the United States.

Mark Feinsand is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.