From "Bobby Beer" and "Bobby Burgers" to turning a perpetual doormat into a must-watch team, Bobby Valentine certainly left his mark during his time as a manager in Japan's baseball league.
Valentine managed seven seasons in Japan, in 1995 and from 2004 to 2009, and his bold attitude really struck a chord with Japanese baseball fans. He was popular and well-liked nationwide.
"When he was managing there, he was super-popular with fans," says Deanna Rubin, who watched Valentine firsthand and blogged about him on her blog Marinerds, etc., "mostly because he was super-accessible. He'd go out and greet fans and sign stuff for everyone sitting in the stands before pretty much every single game. And he used to ride a bike to the stadium, so people were always saying how they saw him out riding his bike." (boston.com)
From "Bobby Beer" and "Bobby Burgers" to turning a perpetual doormat into a must-watch team, Bobby Valentine certainly left his mark during his time as a manager in Japan's baseball league.
Valentine managed seven seasons in Japan, in 1995 and from 2004 to 2009, and his bold attitude really struck a chord with Japanese baseball fans. He was popular and well-liked nationwide.
"When he was managing there, he was super-popular with fans," says Deanna Rubin, who watched Valentine firsthand and blogged about him on her blog Marinerds, etc., "mostly because he was super-accessible. He'd go out and greet fans and sign stuff for everyone sitting in the stands before pretty much every single game. And he used to ride a bike to the stadium, so people were always saying how they saw him out riding his bike." (boston.com)