You Gotta Have Wa Revisited

[Mulboyne]

[BO-SENSEI]

Interesting piece about how Ichiro could be a Hall-of-Famer, which I agree, he has got the hits and records to be given such an honor, but Nomo? I admit that without him wanting to play in the states, other Japanese baseball players may not have been given the chance. But his career started off with a blast with the Dodgers but after a few years he drifted from team to team, never being able to deliever like his earlier days.

[Greji]

Interesting piece about how Ichiro could be a Hall-of-Famer, which I agree, he has got the hits and records to be given such an honor, but Nomo? I admit that without him wanting to play in the states, other Japanese baseball players may not have been given the chance. But his career started off with a blast with the Dodgers but after a few years he drifted from team to team, never being able to deliever like his earlier days.

He was old! A lot pitchers hit their peter principal at 30, some before, some at 35. Those few that make it to 40 are true antiques and as rare.

The Japanese FA Rule for pitchers is nine years for HS. That makes a guy 27 before he is even eligible to go to the MLB. So at that age, with most of them at the mid to down slope of their abilities, none of them are going to have a very long career in the MLB, assuming they can even make it to the show (showcase Kei Igawa here)

Nomo did quite well for his age and also, you have to have ability for all of the other teams to take a chance on you. Also, he threw a no-hitter in both the American and National League, with the second one coming late in his career. Only a couple of pitchers can say that in all of history.

Going back to the point of the article, Nomo is a Hall of Famer for daring to make the leap to the US and for the changes he brought with him. It was him personally that caused all the changes in Japanese baseball, he was the cause of the posting system, the development of a free agent system and other major changes. It was him that made it possible for the rest to come to MLB and thereby get the chance to earn their own way to the Hall of Fame on their own merit as a ball player.

[Bucky]

The Japanese FA Rule for pitchers is nine years for HS. That makes a guy 27 before he is even eligible to go to the MLB. So at that age, with most of them at the mid to down slope of their abilities, none of them are going to have a very long career in the MLB, assuming they can even make it to the show (showcase Kei Igawa here)

Greji,

Don't forgot Mac Suzuki. He showed up in the US as a teenager.

Look at his numbers, he is most certainly a first ballot HOF inductee . .. . NOT.

Makoto Suzuki Career MLB numbers:

• 117 Games
• 16 Wins
• 31 Losses
• 327 Strikeouts
• 5.72 ERA

I think there is still room to join his fan club.

[Sentakki Fried Chicken]

Nomo is a Hall of Famer for daring to make the leap to the US and for the changes he brought with him. It was him personally that caused all the changes in Japanese baseball, he was the cause of the posting system, the development of a free agent system and other major changes. It was him that made it possible for the rest to come to MLB and thereby get the chance to earn their own way to the Hall of Fame on their own merit as a ball player.

Greji, I couldn't agree with you more. And you forgot to mention that Nomo gave spark back to baseball in a big way after it was suffering from the strike that had put paid to the World Series the year before.
Unfortunately for Nomo, though, he's not headed for the Hall of Fame despite the door he opened for Japanese baseball to show the world how good it is. And it's for the same reason why he was elected Rookie of the Year...the people who vote on the Hall simply haven't got a clue what sort of effect he had. Nomo was treated as a rookie even though in his prime he was probably one of the best pitchers Japan ever produced. Those voting for the Hall of Fame simply can't imagine what an enormous effect he had because they weren't here to see it. Any other Japanese who's followed Nomo has just been regarded as par for the course.
I still remember how everyone mocked and jeered Nomo when he announced he was going to play MLB, then a few months later, it seemed there was hardly a person in the country who was not wearing a No. 16 Dodgers shirt. It was the beginning of the end for NPB and set off a slow decline that will probably never be halted. But to the average American sportswriter, it's meaningless. They haven't got a clue what an incredible impact the man had, which is why he won't get in. I truly hope he does, though, because he deserves it. And he was a damn fine pitcher on his day.