Kona Takahashi, RHP (Age-29 Season in 2026)
The free agent class coming over from Japan admittedly drops off a bit once you get beyond those top three names, but there are still a few interesting arms who could get a shot in MLB.
Kona Takahashi has a career 3.39 ERA in his NPB career, and is coming off a season where he pitched to a 3.04 ERA in 148 innings pitched. The lack of strikeouts could be a big concern for Takahashi, as he only punched out 88 batters in those 148 innings this past season.
Featuring a good slider and splitter, Takahashi has found a way to keep runs off the board for years, and could get a shot, but we could be looking at something similar to Tomoyuki Sugano, where your hoping for a back-of-the-rotation innings-eater, rather than an impact arm to slot into the middle of your rotation.
Foster Griffin, LHP (Age-30 Season in 2026)
Once a late first-round pick out of high school back in 2014, Foster Griffin spent years in the minor leagues before finally making his MLB debut back in 2020. Griffin made just one appearance in 2020, then would not make it back up to the show until 2022.
Across five games with the Royals and one with the Blue Jays, Griffin pitched to a 8.53 ERA, giving up six runs in 6 1/3 inning pitched. A free agent in 2023, Griffin decided to go overseas, signing a deal with the Yomiuri Giants.
In his first year in the NPB, Griffin pitched to a 2.75 ERA in 20 games. He signed a two-year extension with the Giants, and across the three years, he pitched to a 2.57 ERA.