Here's a name I wasn't familiar with: Wei-Ying Chen. Ranked #19 on Keith Law's top 50 free agents ahead of Oswalt, Maholm, K-Rod, Bedard etc. (Probably due to age).

19 Wei-Ying Chen
Age: 26 Bats: L Throws: L
Position: SP
Chunichi Dragons

2011 STATS

GM25
W8
L10
BB31
K94
ERA2.68

Chen was born in Taiwan but has pitched in Japan's NPB for several years. He's had good results, but a decline in his stuff this year probably will limit his market.

He had been sitting low 90s and touching 95 in past years but was more 88-92 early in 2011, and his slider didn't have its usual bite. By the end of the year, he was back up to 92-94 and the slider was sharper, so MLB teams' interest might depend on when in the year they saw him. He has a decent split-change that should make him more than just a lefty specialist, although it's not an out pitch for him. Chen still has plus control, with 31 walks in 164 2/3 innings this year for Chunichi, but after striking out more than 21 percent of the hitters he faced in his first three full seasons in NPB, his strikeout rate dropped to 14 percent this year. He is only 25 and offers more upside than the typical NPB refugee, both due to age and the chance for the slider to become a consistently plus pitch.

Three bullpen arms that intrigue me are Francisco Cordero, Joe Nathan and Kyuji Fujikawa...

45 Kyuji Fujikawa
Age: 31 Bats: R Throws: R
Position: RP
Hanshin Tigers

2011 STATS

GM56
W3
L3
BB13
K80
ERA1.24

Fujikawa isn't a free agent but there's a good chance he'll be posted, as he has one year left before true free agency. The timing would be good, as Fujikawa is coming off a year in which he struck out 80 of the 179 batters he faced. Fujikawa is up to 94 mph with his fastball and will sit around 92, but the pitch is pin-straight and he goes to his splitter often to keep changing eye levels. The splitter is an out pitch for him, and he commands it well; he'll also show a junk curveball that he probably should shelve if he comes over. He might be homer-prone with the straight fastball, but the splitter is a potential difference-maker.