Nakamura had a .266 career batting average, 404 home runs and 1348 RBI, and was an eight-time All-Star and four-time Golden Glove winner.

In 2002, he agreed to a two-year, $7 million contract with the New York Mets, but, after word leaked out before he could formally notify the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes management, Nakamura rejected the deal, saying that "I cannot trust such a team which leaked this information at its own Web site" (not knowing that each team's site is managed by Major League Baseball), and re-signed with Kintetsu over considerable controversy.

In 2005, Nakamura walked away from a guaranteed $10 million two-year contract in Japan, primarily also in protest against Orix with the Buffaloes-BlueWave merger that happened the previous offseason, to sign a $500,000 non-guaranteed minor league deal with the Dodgers as a non-roster invitee to spring training.

His annual income declined due to many troubles, but he got over the shock and was crowned the MVP of the 2007 Japan Series, the only NPB championship of his career.

Nakamura originally anticipated becoming a first baseman in 2009 to fill the place of Tyrone Woods, who left the Dragons after the 2008 season.