Hideo Nomo Hideo Nomo Hideo Nomo (野茂 英雄/Nomo Hideo, born August 31, 1968 in Minato-ku, Osaka, Japan) is a retired Japanese baseball pitcher in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and Major League Baseball (MLB). He achieved early success in his native country, where he played with the Kintetsu Buffaloes from to . He then exploited a loophole to free himself from his contract, and became the first Japanese major leaguer to permanently relocate to Major League Baseball in the United States, debuting with the Los Angeles Dodgers in . Although he was not the first Japanese person to play baseball professionally in the
Chan Ho Park was claimed off waivers by the Pittsburgh Pirates. On October 1, Park recorded a record for most wins by an Asian pitcher in MLB history, tossing three scoreless innings for his 124th career victory. He passed Hideo Nomo for the most ever by an Asian-born pitcher. He became a free agent at the end of the season. On December 20, 2010, Park signed one-year deal with the Orix Buffaloes of Nippon Professional Baseball for the 2011 season. On November 24, 2011, Park signed one-year deal with the Hanwha Eagles of Korea Baseball Organization for the 2012 season. On December 20,