Norihiro Nakamura

Nakamura's cash-strapped Japanese club, the Orix Buffaloes, might let him go to an MLB team in 2005 via the posting system. He was almost ready to make the move two years ago, and had informally agreed to a deal with the Mets, but got cold feet at the last minute and stayed at home. The 32-year-old, considered Japan's best third baseman, would have been a prime catch in 2002 coming off consecutive 40-homer, 1.000-plus OPS seasons. In 2004, however, his numbers dropped to .274/.390/.468 with just 19 HR. His bat could still help quite a few teams at third, though. If he makes the move, consider him in Eric Hinske/Tony Batista territory.

You can find Nakamura's Japanese career stats through 2004 at japanesebaseball.com.