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GOLDSEA |
ASIAMS.NET |
ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
IS BYUNG-HYUN KIM ANOTHER HIDEO NOMO?
nly an Arizona Diamondbacks rally in the 9th inning of Game 7 spared Byung-Hyun Kim the ignominy of being labeled the first Asian pitcher ever to cost his team the World Series. It was a nightmare season finish for a 22-year-old prodigy who had begun his major league career so brilliantly less than two years earlier.
In college Kim was Number 1 on the Corean National team, even ahead of Chanho Park, four years his senior. Signed by the Diamondbacks in the spring of 1999, Kim outperformed for two farm teams before being called up in May 2000 to pitch relief. A rising fastball served up via an unnerving, nearly underarm motion quickly earned him the rap of being tough to hit. He racked up 111 kills in 70.2 innings while giving up only 52 runs. And he was all of 21.
By mid-2000 there was even talk of a slot on the All-Star team. The talk stopped in July when he was sent down to Tucson. Kim returned two weeks later to show enough improvement to become the top contender for the closer job. By season's end he made it known to a skeptical Bob Brenly that he was ready to start.
The 2001 season magnified Kim's promise and problems. His 93-mph underarm fastball could retire batters like clockwork -- except when he threw too many balls, took too long to unload pitches, didn't challenge the batters enough. After a rocky spring and an impressive summer Kim hit the skids in September by giving up a series of crucial homers. Brenly kept the faith into the World Series -- with nearly disastrous consequences.
For some Byung-Hyun Kim brings to mind Japanese import Hideo Nomo.
When he joined the Dodgers's starting rotation in 1995, Nomo's killer corkscrew delivery gave the world Nomomania. In 1996 he blessed Coors Field with its first-ever no-hitter. But Nomonania gave way to No-More-Mania. His 2.54 1995 ERA slipped to 3.19 in 1996, 4.25 in 1997 and an abysmal 5.05 in 1998 before he was traded to the Mets midseason.
That was when Hideo Nomo's career entered the twilight zone of fallen superstars.
Released by the Mets during spring training, Nomo sank to a Cubs AAA team, then even lower to a stint with the Brewers's AA Hunstsville before being salvaged by Phil Garner for the desperate Brewers. Nomo pulled off a 4.54 ERA and a 12-8 record. Garner was impressed enough to move the fallen star with him to the Detroit Tigers. Nomo's ERA slipped again to 4.74 and he found himself in Boston where he ended 2001 with a modest 4.50 ERA. But lately Nomo has begun showing flashes of his Dodgers days. In his first Red Sox start on April 3, Nomo set a record for the earliest no-hitter and became only the fourth man ever to pitch no-hitters for both leagues.
Hideo Nomo's decline is said to have begun in July 1997 when his pitching elbow was hit by a line drive. Now that the arm has mended, he's on the comeback trail. Whatever the reason for Nomo's meteoric rise and fall, they do invite parallels to Byung-Hyun Kim's -- a great talent eclipsed by a tragic event. In Kim's case, that tragic event might be the 4th and 5th games of the World Series.
Will Byung-Hyun Kim's career follow the pattern of Hideo Nomo's? Or will Kim shake off his World Series embarrassments and resume his rise?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
(Updated
Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008, 06:00:24 PM)
Where are they now? How about Texas?
Thomas
Monday, April 15, 2002 at 19:58:56 (PDT)
Hey, Proud NYC Asian... Asians pitchers in NYC, eh? Ever heard of IRABU?!?!?! Hmm... if we could only dig in the where are they now file...
Toi San Jai
Tuesday, December 11, 2001 at 15:23:40 (PST)
HB didn't blow those two games. The management did. This guy was so darn overworked because D'backs didn't have any other guys in bullpen that they can really trust. Even though D'backs managed to win the series, they should've known that you can't win games with Schilling and Johnsons' pitching alone. I guess D'backs could use another starting picther and few reliable closer so HB won't get over used
Yo
Sunday, December 02, 2001 at 20:43:50 (PST)
Who's bone-head idea was it to compare Nomo and Kim? They have nothing in common!
Oh yeah, they both pitch! (ooooh)
They're both Asian! (ooooh)
They're both male! (ooooh)
They're both from planet earth! (ooooh)
Nuff said.
Achtungbaby
achtung_eo@yahoo.com
Thursday, November 15, 2001 at 15:50:40 (PST)
I think Asians should get back to studying and not concentrate too much on baseball. We can enjoy baseball although there are a small handful of Asian players in the MLB. There aren't many Jewish baseball stars in the MLB (maybe only Shawn Green who plays for the lousy Hollywood Dodgers)so what's the big deal if Asians are stars or not.
BH Kim has proven a point, he can pitch in the majors. The same applies with Sasaki. Their only stumbling block was that they couldn't "close out" the Yankees in big games. Remember, they are facing the juggernaught team from the Big Apple. Not an easy task! I am a New Yorker, and for Asians to become big baseball stars, they need to be part of a New York team such as the Yankees or Mets. For Asians to play in a small franchise team in a small town just doesn't propel them to greatness.
And no, none of these guys will be a Mariano Rivera. He's a unique talent from the Yankee farm system. Mariano has a pitching style that no one can copy. Just like no one can imitate Ichiro's batsmanship. His devasting cut fast ball took some time to evolve into what we know it to be.
Proud NYC Asian
Wednesday, November 14, 2001 at 16:38:12 (PST)
WHAT!!! Sasaki lost to the Yankees too! Soriano hit a homer off of Sasaki in the 9th inning for the AL finals. To say that Kim is a limited pitcher is a premature statment right now. Kim is only 22 years old. He had limited experience in S.Korea and this is his only second year in the major league. Sasaki who is 33years old blew it too against the yankees. This series will always be remebered as the series for the relief pitchers. Guys like Rivera who is consider to be the best relief pitcher lost to the D'back on the last game on the 9th inning. We ought to be talking about how proud we should feel that in the finals we get to see some asian baseball players. I enjoy watching Ichiro Kim also. Even though he made mistakes we should support him instead of saying that he sucks already.
we ought to have more pride as asian , that way we are strong
Tuesday, November 13, 2001 at 01:02:26 (PST)
Kim has got the ring now, which people like Barry Bonds, A Rod, Manny, and Griffey do not have. That should be more of a help than a hindrance to his game. He's still a great pitcher, but those home run balls could not have come at a better time. He's young and he's got a lot of potential. He's capable of striking out the side, yet the only hits he gives up seem to be the long ball.
Scooby Doo
bboymaul@aol.com
Monday, November 12, 2001 at 21:19:52 (PST)
What abouut the 100 other pitchers in baseball that didn't produce squat this season. He helped get them to the play offs so ultimately the notion of his being an embarrasment is silly.
Makadu
Monday, November 12, 2001 at 07:56:27 (PST)
The problem with kim is that he is really only a two pitch pitcher (fastball and slider). For kim to become all-star player, he really needs to develop a third pitch. Sasaki of seattle has 4 pitches (2 types of forkball, fastball, slider-curve). His true strength is his delivery to the plate. If kim really wants to start next year, then he really needs to develop a third pitch. While watching the world series, he seemed to be overpitching. When most players overthrow their fastball it straightens out. But his fastball seems to go higher in the strike zone.
Am baseball fan
Saturday, November 10, 2001 at 14:27:17 (PST)
It really isn't fair to suggest that Byung would have been the first Asian pitcher to cost his team the World Series. That's a pretty negative perspective. I'm a big baseball fan and I know baseball history fairly well. If the AZ Diamondbacks had lost the World Series, then yes, it would have been due in large part to Byung's mistake pitches in NY. However, many white, black and latin baseball players have done the same.
Hey, Hideo Nomo did a great job for the LA Dodgers (my favorite team). It was Dodger managers who made him pitch until his arm damn well fell off. And then they went ahead and released him from the club when he started struggling. Now, just who was being the real teamplayer? Hands down - Hideo Nomo.
Geof DB
geofdb67@aol.com
Saturday, November 10, 2001 at 00:17:11 (PST)
You can't blame the loss of a game or an entire series on one individual. That's just not how it works, even if it is baseball. Kim didn't single handedly lose those games so you should get off his back. I think Goldsea is digging too far with this topic, trying to scapegoat a pitcher just because he's Asian? Would this even be a matter of contention if Kim were a black man or a white man? He's an athlete (no color lines). Leave it at that. It remains to be seen if his career will blossom or go down the toilet because of this. But i don't think it has anything to do with him being Asian. Why compare him to Hideo Nomo? There are lots of pitchers in baseball history that have started good and flamed out.
Valley Chinese Dude
Friday, November 09, 2001 at 20:01:27 (PST)
Surely if the D-Backs lost, a scapegoat would have had to be found, and if so, Kim would have been the one. It would have been much easier for Americans to put the blame on him, especially since he is Asian. I think Brenly will give him more opportunities and I think he will improve. I actually wanted the D-Backs to win not only because they were underdogs, but so Kim would not be blamed and Asians won't be further bashed by some members of American society. I felt sorry for him when he cried in game 5, and it was refreshing to see that the catcher and the other players comforted him.
The Assassin
Friday, November 09, 2001 at 15:11:58 (PST)
I'm afraid you're comparing apples and oragnges with Nomo and Kim. First of all, Nomo effectiveness started to deteriorate after a string of injuires. If I recall correctly, he has even had surgery to fix his arm which was completely useless a handful of years ago. Nomo is also now in his mid-30s and past his prime.
BK on the other hand is only 22 years old. Aside from the world series, he had a great year. If he manages to keep his arm healty, he has the potential to become one of the most dominant pitchers in the majors. His problem is with left-handed batters. As he pretty much dominates righties with is hard breaking slider and fastball. If he can develop an effective change-up or sinker to keep lefties honest, he may well be on his way of becoming the next Dennis Eckersley, or who knows, maybe the next Mariano Rivera.
ChicagoGuy
Friday, November 09, 2001 at 15:05:32 (PST)
The Diamondbacks won the series, so BH Kim didn't cost them the series. Sure he made some mistakes, but he has time to learn and hone his skills. He will go far and I'll be watching his progress.
Go Korea!
L.A. Korean
Friday, November 09, 2001 at 02:23:09 (PST)
It would be more accurate to compare Kim to Chanho Park. Park had a phenomenal but rocky first, second and third years. Then he came back strong and now he's one of the best in the National League. Nomo has some basic problems with his pitching style. It takes too long to wind up and isn't really efficient for the long haul.
Start Kim
Thursday, November 08, 2001 at 19:39:10 (PST)
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