Royals, Veteran Japanese Pitcher Nomo Ink Minors Deal, Spring Invite
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Veteran Japanese pitcher Hideo Nomo, who won Rookie of the Year honors with his quirky skyward-glancing delivery in the strike-abbreviated 1995 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers and who had standout years with the Dodgers in 1996, 2002 and 2003 but who hasn’t pitched at the Major League level since 2005, was reported on a Royals’ press release to have been signed to a minor league contract by the Kansas City Royals which included an invitation to spring training and a shot to make the team.
Nomo was an integral cog in the Dodgers’ 1995 NL West Division crown, their 1996 Wild Card finish. The Dodgers didn’t advance in post-season play either in 1995 or in 1996 although Nomo and Ramon Martinez were the stalwarts of the Dodgers’ starting rotation throughout both seasons. Nomo, who has a career mark to date of 123-109 with a 4.21 ERA including two no-hitters (one in each league), struggled in 1998 with the Dodgers and the Mets, went 12-8 in 1999 with the Milwaukee Brewers, struggled with the Detroit Tigers in 2000 before finishing 13-10 with Boston in 2001 before returning to L.A. in 2002 and 2003 having fine seasons. But then his ERA exploded in 2004 and 2005 and he left baseball for the 2006 and 2007 seasons.
The Royals, who have finished last in the AL Central division with disastrous records over the past four seasons since 2003 when they finished 4 games above .500, could use a veteran to add depth to the starting rotation to go along with Brian Bannister (12-9, 3.87 ERA), Zack Greinke (7-7, 3.69 ERA), Gil Meche (9-13, 3.67 ERA) and mid-season acquisition Kyle Davies (7-15, 6.09 ERA).
AP Sports writer John Marshall reports for Yahoo sports the reactions of KC’s general manager to the signing as well as his own observations;
“He’s been a successful major league pitcher in the past, and we wanted to give him an opportunity to compete for a job,” Royals general manager Dayton Moore said Friday. “Any player we bring into major league camp, we feel can compete for a job, and he’s going to get a chance.”
Nomo, who’s had a history of shoulder problems, could fill a spot in the rotation or as a reliever. An added benefit would be mentoring Yasuhiko Yabuta.
If he is added to the major league roster, Nomo would get a $600,000, one-year contract and have the chance to earn $100,000 in performance bonuses.
New Royals manager Trey Hillman spent the past five seasons managing the Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan and helped lure Yabuta to Kansas City. The 34-year-old right-hander agreed to a $6 million, two-year contract in November and is expected to compete for a spot as the Royals’ primary setup man.
Nomo’s two no-hitters include the first — and still only — no-hitter in the history of Colorado’s Coors Field in 1996 — a 9-0 win over the Rockies only marred by 4 walks vs 8 strikeouts, and the another, a 3-0 win on April 4, 2001 over Baltimore while pitching for Boston in 2001. The April 4 date, in the second game of the season, was the earliest no-hitter ever in MLB history. Nomo walked 3 while striking out 11.
The Royals press release also notes that “he has made seven starts this winter for the Leones del Caracas in the Venezuelan Winter League, compiling a 0-2 record.”
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