Farewell, Hideo Nomo

[Mulboyne]

[floatr][/floatr]AP: Japanese pitcher Hideo Nomo announces retirement
Hideo Nomo, who pitched a pair of no-hitters and led a rush of Japanese players to the major leagues, is finished. Nomo announced his retirement Thursday, agent Don Nomura said. Once known for a deceptive delivery and a devastating forkball, the 39-year-old Nomo was released by the Kansas City Royals in late April. Nomo's 123 wins are the most in the majors by a Japanese pitcher. He was the 1995 NL Rookie of the Year with the Los Angeles Dodgers and is one of only four pitchers to throw no-hitters in the AL and NL...Nomo also created a wave of "Nomo-mania" wherever he pitched. Many fans were curious to see his "tornado" windup, in which he paused with his arms overhead and then twisted his body before throwing. Opposing hitters weren't so eager to see him. Nomo's forkball took a wicked dip, similar to a split-fingered fastball...Following Nomo's success, many more Japanese players came to the majors. Hideki Irabu, Shigetoshi Hasegawa and Tomo Ohka were among those who quickly followed, with Ichiro Suzuki, Kazuhiro Sasaki and Hideki Matsui arriving later...more...

[AssKissinger]

He's a legend

[Behan]

What a long journey! Otsukaresama!

[TennoChinko]

I bet he'll look for one more stint in the NPB as a closer before he retires for good.

[Greji]

I bet he'll look for one more stint in the NPB as a closer before he retires for good.

I gotta agree with AK 100%. He simply is legend in its pure form. But, I don't think we will be able to see him in NPB, even if he was up to it.

When Don Nomura found the loop hole to allow him to beat (escape?) the NPB slave owners, Nomura was pretty well blacklisted by all teams in Japan. This even carried over to the MLB as they don't want to take a chance on angering (if that's the right word} their NPB contacts, so they continue (even now) to keep Nomura and arms length.

That Nomo would be a draw to an NPB club goes without saying, but they may not want to take a chance on angering those in the system that are still down on him.

Essentially, what Nomura did with Nomo was at a point when his contract with Kintetsu was up for renewal, he had Nomo demand a huge amount of money (by NPB standards) that they knew the Buffalo would, or could, not accept. Since at the time, Japan had no free agency per say, when they refused his contract demands he was essentially released and available to negotiations with other clubs. When that happened before in Japan, the other J-clubs just refused any offers to negotiate and the recalcient player would go back to his original club and sign for whatever peanuts they offered him (Note Shimaguni complex here. A J-player would only ever think of playing with a wagakuni team).

Nomo didn't. He went to LA and caught the J-owners with their panties down. As a result they immediately started working with the players association to set-up a free agency rule. But other than leaving players free to negotiate, what they really wanted was to set up a specific time limit where the club held power over the contracts until they themselves, officially released the player, not just loss of control by the termination of the contract. That's why it is such a long period of time before a pitcher is eligible to go to the MLB unless he is posted.

The slave owners got their control back, but they still haven't forgiven the Nomura and Nomo combo for slamming the door on their johnson!

[TennoChinko]

I gotta agree with AK 100%. He simply is legend in its pure form. But, I don't think we will be able to see him in NPB, even if he was up to it.

When Don Nomura found the loop hole to allow him to beat (escape?) the NPB slave owners, Nomura was pretty well blacklisted by all teams in Japan. This even carried over to the MLB as they don't want to take a chance on angering (if that's the right word} their NPB contacts, so they continue (even now) to keep Nomura and arms length.

That Nomo would be a draw to an NPB club goes without saying, but they may not want to take a chance on angering those in the system that are still down on him.

Essentially, what Nomura did with Nomo was at a point when his contract with Kintetsu was up for renewal, he had Nomo demand a huge amount of money (by NPB standards) that they knew the Buffalo would, or could, not accept. Since at the time, Japan had no free agency per say, when they refused his contract demands he was essentially released and available to negotiations with other clubs. When that happened before in Japan, the other J-clubs just refused any offers to negotiate and the recalcient player would go back to his original club and sign for whatever peanuts they offered him (Note Shimaguni complex here. A J-player would only ever think of playing with a wagakuni team).

Nomo didn't. He went to LA and caught the J-owners with their panties down. As a result they immediately started working with the players association to set-up a free agency rule. But other than leaving players free to negotiate, what they really wanted was to set up a specific time limit where the club held power over the contracts until they themselves, officially released the player, not just loss of control by the termination of the contract. That's why it is such a long period of time before a pitcher is eligible to go to the MLB unless he is posted.

The slave owners got their control back, but they still haven't forgiven the Nomura and Nomo combo for slamming the door on their johnson!

I disagree. Not everyone believes in eating at Watanabe's cockmeat sandwich shop...

It is not too hard to imagine that there are those in the NPB baseball community who don't give a fvck about what the Yomiuri Yakuza Godfather or the impotent NPB office thinks.

[Captain Japan]

Nomo is truly Japan's baseball hero. The oft-told story goes something like this: a handful of reporters sent him off at the airport as a traitor in 1995 when he departed and a massive swarm greeted him as Japan's own upon his return as the NL Rookie of the Year.

[Mulboyne]

AFP: Japanese baseball players salute Hideo Nomo on retirement

Japanese baseball players on Friday saluted Hideo Nomo for opening the door to the US Major Leagues after the pioneering pitcher said he was retiring at age 39. Nomo joined the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1995, paving the way for a wave of top Japanese players to cross the Pacific including Ichiro Suzuki, Hideki Matsui and Daisuke Matsuzaka. "Those of us who're playing in the Major Leagues owe him a lot," said Matsui, a star slugger for the New York Yankees. "I want to tell him, 'You did a great job,'" said Matsui, whom Nomo struck out in April in his last Major League appearance with the Kansas City Royals..."A pioneer to the US baseball world makes a decision at 39," Sports Nippon newspaper said in a headline. "Goodbye, tornado," it said, referring to his twisting pitch..."I became aware of his greatness as I'm wearing a uniform" of the Dodgers, said Japanese pitcher Hiroki Kuroda, who joined Los Angeles this year. "If we haven't had him here, it would have been difficult for us to play right now," Kuroda said. Tommy Lasorda, who managed the Dodgers when Nomo joined, told Japanese public broadcaster NHK: "He accomplished something that a very few guys have ever done. I want to congratulate him on having a tremendous career here."

Nomo also won praise from players who have stayed in Japan, where there have been growing complaints that the increasing flight to the United States has hurt interest in the domestic leagues. Sadaharu Oh, who holds the world all-time home-run record and coached the national team to victory in the inaugural World Baseball Classic in 2006, credited Nomo with showing Japan's worth. "He proved that the level of Japanese baseball is as high as it is in the United States and has encouraged other players to take the challenge," said Oh. Nippon Ham Fighters pitcher Yu Darvish, a rising star often seen as a future export to the Major Leagues, voiced hope that Nomo would keep playing. "I think he still can play. In the Major Leagues, a lot of players reverse their retirement. I hope he'll do so," Darvish said.

[Greji]

I disagree. Not everyone believes in eating at Watanabe's cockmeat sandwich shop...

It is not too hard to imagine that there are those in the NPB baseball community who don't give a fvck about what the Yomiuri Yakuza Godfather or the impotent NPB office thinks.

I think you are spot on in where the problem imminates from in NPB and while everybody on the outside loves Nomo for what he has done for baseball and especially the view abroad of J-ball, the people on the inside are still under the power of that same group of cock breaths.

So I don't think that the people on the inside of the industry out of the public eye have (can?) any desire to really change much about J-ball for the immediate future.

I have also heard stories (rumors would be better) of how they are gearing up to prevent any possibility of Darvish going abroad early whether he wants to or not.