Yankees' Matsui gives $500K to South Asia

KANAZAWA, Japan, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- New York Yankees outfielder Hideki Matsui donated about $500,000 Thursday to the Japanese Red Cross Society to support South Asian tsunami victims.

Matsui, 30, and his father Masao, 62, visited the town hall in their hometown of Neagari, Ishikawa Prefecture, and handed the donation to town mayor Fumio Hirata who serves as chief of the Red Cross local division, the Kyodo news agency reported.

"As I watch the news every day, I came to think that this is probably the worst disaster in history," Matsui said. "I hope this will be of help."