Pitcher, Los
Angeles Dodgers
Age: 27 (Aug. 31)
Bats – Right,
Throws – Right
Height: 6’2” Weight: 210
Prior to 1995:
A native of
Osaka, Japan, Nomo began playing baseball in his youth and developed his
corkscrew (or “tornado”) pitching windup in fifth grade. A dominant pitcher in
middle school due to his speed, his issues with control instilled fear as well.
While attending Seiyo Industrial High School, he performed well and pitched a
perfect game. Failing to draw the interest of college or pro scouts, Nomo
joined a semipro team and worked at developing a forkball. Earning a spot on
the Japanese Olympic team in 1988 that won a silver medal, he signed with the
Kintetsu Buffaloes, an Osaka-based club in the Japanese Pacific League for a
100-million yen bonus (approximately $1 million). With his fastball and
forkball, he produced an 18-8 record with a 2.91 ERA, 21 complete games, and
235 strikeouts as a rookie in 1990, receiving Rookie of the Year and MVP awards
in addition to the Sawamura Award as the best pitcher in Nippon Professional
Baseball. Mentored by veteran pitcher Masato Yushii, Nomo followed up with a
17-11 tally in 1991 with a 3.05 ERA, 22 complete games, and 287 strikeouts. In
1992 he went 18-8 with a 2.66 ERA, 17 complete games, 5 shutouts, and 228
strikeouts. But after compiling a 17-12 record in 1993 with a 3.70 ERA and 276
strikeouts, the pitcher nicknamed “Tatsu-maki” (Tornado in Japanese)
experienced an injury-plagued season in 1994 as the result of overwork,
accumulating only 114 innings with an 8-7 record, 3.63 ERA, and 126 strikeouts.
Utilizing a loophole in his contract, he announced his retirement from Nippon
Professional Baseball and signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers for 1995.
Following a single start with the high Class A California League, Nomo was
called up to the Dodgers.
1995 Season Summary
Appeared in 28 games
[Bracketed
numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]
Pitching
Games – 28
Games Started –
28
Complete Games
– 4 [5, tied with John Burkett, Ramon Martinez & Tyler Green]
Wins – 13 [9,
tied with Ismael Valdez, Denny Neagle & Jeff Fassero]
Losses – 6
PCT - .684 [7]
Saves – 0
Shutouts – 3 [1,
tied with Greg Maddux]
Innings Pitched
– 191.1 [13]
Hits – 124
Runs – 63
Earned Runs – 54
Home Runs – 14
Bases on Balls
– 78 [2]
Strikeouts – 236
[1]
ERA – 2.54 [2]
Hit Batters – 5
Balks – 5 [1]
Wild Pitches – 19
[1]
League-leading strikeouts
were +43 ahead of runner-up John Smoltz
League-leading balks
were +1 ahead of runners-up Carlos Perez & William VanLandingham
League-leading
wild pitches were +4 ahead of runner-up Hector Carrasco
Midseason
Snapshot: 6-1, ERA - 1.99, SO - 119 in 90.1 IP
Most
strikeouts, game – 16 (in 8 IP) at Pittsburgh 6/14
10+ strikeout
games – 11
Fewest hits
allowed, game (min. 7 IP) – 1 (in 9 IP) at San Francisco 8/5
Batting
PA – 72, AB – 66,
R – 2, H – 6, 2B – 0, 3B – 0, HR – 0, RBI – 4, BB – 0, SO – 33, SB – 0, CS – 0,
AVG - .091, GDP – 1, HBP – 0, SH – 5, SF – 1
Fielding
Chances – 21
Put Outs – 6
Assists – 12
Errors – 3
DP – 2
Pct. - .857
Postseason
Pitching: G – 1 (NLDS vs. Cincinnati)
GS – 1, CG – 0,
Record – 0-1, PCT – .000, SV – 0, ShO – 0, IP – 5, H – 7, R – 5, ER – 5, HR – 2,
BB – 2, SO – 6, ERA – 9.00, HB – 0, BLK – 0, WP – 1
Awards & Honors:
NL Rookie of
the Year: BBWAA
All-Star (Started
for NL)
4th in
NL Cy Young voting (29 points, 21% share)
NL ROY Voting (Top
5):
Hideo Nomo,
LAD: 118 points – 18 of 28 first place votes, 84% share
Chipper Jones,
Atl.: 104 points – 10 first place votes, 74% share
Quilvio Veras,
Fla.: 14 points – 10% share
Jason
Isringhausen, NYM: 4 points – 3% share
John Mabry,
StL.: 4 points – 3% share
Carlos Perez, Mon.: 4 points – 3% share
---
The Dodgers
went 78-66 in the strike-shortened season to finish first in the NL Western
Division by 1 game over the Colorado Rockies. The Dodgers contended from the
start and were briefly in first in the NL West in late June. 5 games behind the
Rockies on July 25, they commenced a 15-6 run to regain first place for the
first time in six weeks and remained in first or second until clinching the division
title against San Diego on Sept. 30, capping a 17-8 run. Nomo was at his best
during a 6-0 June in which his ERA was 0.89. Lost NLDS to the Cincinnati Reds, 3
games to 0.
Aftermath of 1995:
Nomo followed
up on his outstanding rookie season by posting a 16-11 record in 1996 that
included a no-hitter on the road against Colorado. His ERA was 3.19 and he
recorded 234 strikeouts, which included 17 in a win against the Florida
Marlins. In 1997 Nomo was bothered by a sore elbow that required surgery after
the season and went on to a lesser performance of 14-12 with a 4.25 ERA and 233
strikeouts in 207.1 innings pitched. After getting off to a 2-7 start with a
4.92 ERA in 1998, Nomo was traded to the New York Mets in June and went 4-5
with a 4.82 ERA the rest of the way. Released by the Mets during spring
training in 1999, Nomo caught on with the Milwaukee Brewers where he produced a
12-8 tally and 4.54 ERA with 161 strikeouts while accumulating 176.1 innings. A
free agent in the offseason, he signed a one-year deal with Detroit in 2000.
Dealing with nagging injuries, his record was 8-12 with a 4.74 ERA and he was
prone to giving up home runs (31). He also struck out 181 batters over 190
innings. Moving on to the Boston Red Sox in 2001, he pitched a no-hitter at
Baltimore in his first start and went on to a 13-10 tally with a 4.50 ERA and
league-leading 220 strikeouts. In the offseason he was offered a three-year
deal to return to the Dodgers in 2002. Back with his original major league
team, he regained command of his fastball and produced a 16-6 mark with a 3.39
ERA and 193 strikeouts while compiling 220.1 innings for a 92-win club. He had
another solid season in 2003 posting a 16-13 record and a 3.09 ERA with 177
strikeouts over 218.1 innings. Nomo had surgery on his rotator cuff in the
offseason and the speed of his fastball dropped in 2004. Missing time with
inflammation in his rotator cuff, he was briefly sent down to Las Vegas of the
Class AAA Pacific Coast League and was released following a year in which his
major league record was 4-11 with an 8.25 ERA. Signing on with Tampa Bay in
2005 he was released in July with a 5-8 tally and 7.24 ERA. Signed by the
Yankees he pitched only in Class AAA and was let go following the season. Signed
by the Chicago White Sox in 2006, he pitched only once with Charlotte of the
Class AAA International League before being released due to an elbow injury.
After a stint with Caracas of the Venezuelan Winter League in 2007-08, he
signed with the Kansas City Royals in 2008, who sought to convert him to a
middle reliever. The experiment failed and he was let go in late April and
retired from baseball at age 39. In Japan his career record was 78-46 with a
3.15 ERA, 80 complete games, 13 shutouts, and 1204 strikeouts in 1051.1 innings
pitched. In the American major leagues, he went 123-109 with a 4.24 ERA, 16
complete games, 9 shutouts, and 1918 strikeouts in 1976.1 innings. With the
Dodgers his record was 81-66 with a 3.74 ERA, 12 complete games, 7 shutouts,
and 1200 strikeouts in 1217.1 innings. Nomo appeared in two postseason games
and was 0-2 with a 10.38 ERA and 9 strikeouts over 8.2 innings. He was a
one-time All-Star who twice received Cy Young votes. Nomo was elected to the
Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 2014 as only the third player to be selected
in his first year of eligibility. He set the stage for other Japanese players
to come to the American major leagues after first achieving success in Japan.
---
Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were recipients of
the Rookie of the Year Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America
(1947 to present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from
its inception through 1948 and from 1949 on to one recipient from each major
league.
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