U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns welcomed the signing of Daisuke Matsuzaka with the Boston Red Sox during an appearance at New York's Asia Society on Monday night.
''We hope he will bring to Boston another championship,'' Burns told reporters after a speech on U.S. policy in South Asia. ''He's a great pitcher. He may be the best pitcher in the whole world. So we're putting all of our faith in Matsuzaka.''
Born in New York but raised in Massachusetts and a graduate of Boston College, Burns is described as a ''lifelong member of Red Sox nation'' on his State Department biography.
Burns described Boston as the ''Athens of America'' because of its tradition of learning, and called it a ''beautiful place for Japanese.''
The Boston Red Sox said Tuesday the club has officially made an offer to the 26-year-old Seibu Lions right-hander after bidding $51.11 million for the exclusive right to negotiate with him.
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