Comprehensive information and links about Hideo Nomo

Hideo Nomo (born August 31, 1968Hideo Nomo is a right-handed pitcher who has achieved success both in Japan and the United States. Nomo is currently a minor league baseball pitcher for the Columbus Clippers.

Nomo was on the silver medal winning Japanese baseball team at the 1988 Olympics, and the Kintetsu Buffaloes drafted him in 1989. Nomo debuted with them in 1990 and was an immediate success, going 18-8 but more impressively striking out 287 hitters in just 235 innings. The strikeout numbers are attributed to his unorthodox wind-up, where he turns his back to the hitter, raises his pivot leg, and freezes for a second before throwing. The windup gave him the nickname "Tornado". In his first 4 seasons, Nomo was as consistent, and consistently good, as any pitcher in Japanese baseball, winning 17 or 18 games each year. His fifth season in 1994 was marred by a shoulder injury and only netted him 8 wins.

Nomo was becoming one of the most popular baseball players in Japan but after the '94 season, Nomo got into a contract dispute with team management. The Buffaloes rebuffed Nomo's demands to have a contract agent and multi-year contract. This led to him heading to the United States, where in February of 1995, the Los Angeles Dodgers signed him to a contract. After a month in the minors, necessitated by a season shortened by a player's strike, he became the first Japanese-born Japanese Leaguer since Masanori Murakami in 1965, to appear in a major league game on May 2. The pressure on him would be tremendous, and Japanese media and fans appeared in large numbers in games he started. Nomo's games were regularly broadcast live to Japan, despite the fact most people would be waking up when he started games. Nomo more than lived up to their expectations.

The tornado delivery that baffled batters in Japan had the same effect on major league hitters, and he led the league in strikeouts (while finishing second in walks) and was second with a 2.54 earned run average. He also started that year's All-Star Game, striking out 3 of the 6 batters he faced. But he only barely won National League Rookie of the Year honors that year over future MVP Chipper Jones, as most voters felt that his Japanese success made him anything but a rookie, although by major league rules he was one. Nomo only dropped slightly in 1996 as he had another fine season, which was capped by a no-hitter in the unlikeliest of places, Denver's Coors Field, a park which is essentially a pitcher's hell due to its high elevation. Nomo remains the only pitcher to throw a no-hitter at Coors Field.

As batters caught on to his delivery, his effectiveness waned somewhat in 1997, although he still went 14-12, and then crashed down on him in 1998 when he started the year 2-7 and earned a trade to the New York Mets, where he wasn't much better and got released. He signed with the Chicago Cubs in 1999 and made three starts for their AAA minor league team, refused further starts in the minor leagues, and got a contract with the Milwaukee Brewers, where he went 12-8 with a 4.54 ERA. The Brewers waived him after contract issues. The Philadelphia Phillies claimed him, then granted him free agency only 24 hours later after more contract issues. Finally signed by the Detroit Tigers in 2000, he went 8-12 with a 4.74 ERA and was released again.

Nomo signed with the Boston Red Sox in 2001 and had a decent season again, but it started off with a bang, as he threw his second no-hitter in his Sox debut against the Baltimore Orioles. As in the case of his previous no-hitter, this one was the first ever thrown in the park where he was pitching, in this case Oriole Park at Camden Yards. He also led the league in strikeouts for the first time since his first American campaign. A free agent after the end of the year, Nomo returned to where it all began with the Dodgers in 2002, and ended up having his best season since 1996, when he finished with a 16-6 and a low 3.39 ERA, finally regaining the form he brought from Japan.

However, Nomo began to struggle again in 2004. After undergoing shoulder surgery in October 2003, he was benched after going 4-11 with a 8.25 ERA for the Dodgers (the worst ERA in the history of baseball for a player with at least 15 decisions in a season).

Before the start of spring training for 2005, he signed a $800,000 contract, plus the possibility of an additional $700,000 in performance bonuses, with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. After a poor start in which he posted a 7.24 ERA, he was released on July 25. He has said he won't pitch in Japan if he isn't signed by another major-league team.

On July 27, Nomo was picked up off waivers by the New York Yankees, who signed him to a minor-league contract.

Nomo has 123 wins in the Major Leagues and 78 in Japan, winning his 200th overall game on June 15, 2005. Nomo's success helped inspire other stars from Japan such as Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui to come over to the States as well.

During his last year in Japan with the Kintetsu Buffaloes in 1994, Nomo is involved in an interesting season opener against the Seibu Lions. He has a stunning 11 Strikeouts after 4 innings, most importantly no hits allowed. But the game remains in a scoreless tie after 8 innings, and the Buffaloes finally gave Nomo a lead in the top of the 9th. With one out and man on second, Lions decided to intentionally walk Ralph Bryant but the next batter connected for a 3-run homer off starter Kaku Taigen. Now only 3 outs separates Nomo and a no hitter. But Lions quickly responds in the bottom of the 9th with a leadoff double. With the amazing feat gone Nomo proceeds to walk the next batter. Now it starts to get unlucky when the second baseman failed to make a throw for an error on a potentinal double play ball. With the bases loaded and no outs, the next batter, Ito Tsutomu, is the only Lions player Nomo fails to get a strikeout in the day. As a result the Buffaloes will not let Nomo pitch anymore and brings in reliever Akahori Motoyuki and the worst possible outcome happened. Ito drilled the ball to the left for a walkoff grand slam. This has to be Nomo's most devastating loss in his career.

, a non-profit amateur baseball team in Sakai, Osaka, where he played for three years up until he made a debut in Japanese professional baseball to help promote amateur baseball and to give young players opportunities. Although over 154,000 players join high school level baseball, most of them lose places to play baseball because of Japan's economic decline and poor farm system of professional baseball in Japan. His motive to establish this team is based on his own experience of not being a top prospect in his high school years and his belief that he wouldn't be make it in pro ball without amateur baseball days.