The Book of Nomo - Epilogue
TOKYO — Hideo Nomo had his detractors. There are some people who argue that he should have done a lot more than he did — which was doing his job well in MLB and pocketing a lot of money for it. They argue that he should have tried to connect better with American fan, that he should have learned to use English more, instead of hiding behind an interpreter throughout his MLB career and granting so few interviews.
They also argue, he should have used the clout he had as a highly successful pioneer and tried to do more to improve the lot of minority players back in Japan. After all, the argument goes, Nomo benefitted from the fruits of participating in a society and a sports system that is vastly more open minded that that of Japan. In contrast to the NPB, where there have been strict limits on foreign participation and the right to become a free agent to leave Japan and join an MLB team comes only after nine long years, MLB has no restrictions whatsoever on foreign players and allows for free agency after just six years.
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