Hiroki Kuroda said Monday the reaction of Hiroshima Carp fans told him that his decision to give up an impressive major league career for a return to the Central League club was the right one.
A day after 100 fans welcomed him at Hiroshima Airport, Kuroda said the fans were one reason he desired to come back to Japan.
"The Carp organization, but to an even greater extent the fans sent me off with such warm wishes," Kuroda said at a press conference, as he starts his first season in Nippon Professional Baseball since 2007. "I was surprised how many people there were (at the airport). It made me feel I had come home.