The Nikkan Sports, on the front page of its Aug. 23 edition, ran a speculative but spectacular story with a headline saying Bobby Valentine would return to Japan in 2004 for a second tenure as manager of the Chiba Lotte Marines.
Bobby Valentine is rumored to be bringing his passionate approach to the game back to Japan as manager of the Chiba Lotte Marines for a second time.
Hard to believe it will have been nine years since Bobby V. led the perennial Pacific League second division team to its only top three finish in the last 22 seasons, but it was 1995, the year the Great Hanshin Earthquake killed more than 5,500 people in Kobe and surrounding areas, and when the Aum Shinrikyo cult released sarin gas in the Tokyo subways, killing 12 and injuring hundreds.
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