Nomo indicated on Saturday he's determined to overcome the right groin injury that has interrupted his comeback attempt. When the Royals leave Milwaukee for their opener at Detroit, Nomo will return to Surprise, Ariz., for treatment.

"I want to fix my leg, and make it perfect and go from there," Nomo said through translator Shingo Matsubara.

The decision to send Nomo to Arizona was made on Friday after he worked out before a game against the Brewers. On Saturday, he worked out again and said there was no pain.

Asked if the injury might lead to retirement, the 39-year-old Nomo replied: "I don't think so."

He said he'd be open to pitching in the Minor Leagues.

"Yes, I think so, but first I have to go back to Arizona and do a rehab and get myself healthy," he said.

Nomo, a non-roster player who signed a Minor League contract, was making a serious bid to win a bullpen job when he suffered the groin injury on Tuesday night. Earlier ruled out of a starting job, Nomo still had things to prove about converting to relief.

"We don't know yet about back-to-back days," Royals manager Trey Hillman said. "We don't about the new role. But did he show he had Major League abilities? Yes.

"He missed bats very effectively. [He had] command of the fastball, mixed in the slider and the split's still there."

Nomo pitched in seven Cactus League games with a 4.80 ERA, a 1-0 record and a .297 average by opponents. In 15 innings, he had 17 strikeouts and gave up three walks and 19 hits.

"I really appreciate that they invited me to Spring Training, and they gave me a lot of chances to throw and I really enjoyed being on the mound," Nomo said.

Hillman said he didn't know what might happen next with Nomo, who has attracted a large following of Japanese media. He became the object of "Nomo-mania" as a sensational rookie with the Dodgers in 1995. Nomo won 16 games in his second stint with Los Angeles in 2003, but he hasn't pitched in the Majors since 2005.

"I can't make predictions for you because I don't know how the body's going to react," Hillman said. "He knows that we don't want him to pitch until he's healthy. If that falls so he can get some action down in Arizona, we'll do that. If not, we'll have to look at other options."