If Fukuoka Daiei Hawks slugger Nobuhiko Matsunaka appeared to be in a hurry to get home after Sunday's game against the Chiba Lotte Marines, there was a simple explanation. He had to cook a farewell dinner for his buddy Rodney Pedraza, who was spending his last night in Japan after being told Friday he would be released by the Hawks.
Matsunaka wasn't the only Daiei player Pedraza paid a visit to. Over the weekend, the Hawks' relief ace made the rounds, saying goodbye to all the friends he had made over the last few years in Fukuoka. He went out for "sayonara" dinners with some of his teammates and met up with several others at a local karaoke bar.
Saying goodbye turned out to be difficult because there was no simple explanation for why Pedraza, one of the Pacific League's most successful foreign players, was released along with starting pitcher Brady Raggio.