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Cousin is a former member of the White Sox organization who elected free agency after the 2024 season. The 27-year-old will get a chance to show his stuff in Mexico, and a good showing could lead to more interest in the 2025 offseason. He carried a 3.55 ERA in 25 1/3 IP for Triple A Charlotte in 2024, striking out 19 and walking 12 over those frames.

Avila heads overseas in an effort to bolster his long-term value after being removed from Cleveland’s 40-man roster last month. The 28-year-old righty was a durable workhorse in 50 appearances last year for the Guardians, compiling a respectable 3.25 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 73/30 K/BB ratio across 74 2/3 innings. It’s possible he’ll convert back to a starting role overseas in Japan.

The 32-year-old hurler was non-tendered by the Mariners in late November and didn’t find a deal to his liking on the open market, so he has decided to head overseas for the 2025 season. Voth did a nice job out of the M’s bullpen in 2024, registering a 3.69 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and a 61/18 K/BB ratio over 61 innings. What’s intriguing is that the plan is for him to work as a starter in Japan — perhaps with the idea of returning to the big leagues for the 2026 season in that same role if he has success there.

Marte signed a minor-league contract with the Mariners back in November but will head overseas in favor of a much more lucrative opportunity. The 30-year-old righty made 23 relief appearances last year for the Phillies and holds a pedestrian 5.64 ERA, 1.61 WHIP and 105/54 K/BB ratio across 113 1/3 innings (102 appearances) in the big leagues since 2022. He’ll attempt to rebuild his long-term value overseas in Japan while making much more than he would’ve on a stateside minor-league deal.

The intriguing 32-year-old southpaw registered a stellar 2.69 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and a 182/38 K/BB ratio over 157 innings over 26 starts in the Korea Baseball Organization in 2024. The Yankees, Astros, Orioles, Brewers and Twins were all linked to him earlier in the off-season, though it’s unclear which teams remain in the hunt and who else may have joined in the pursuit. It still seems likely that Hart returns stateside for the 2025 season, either as a member of a starting rotation or as a swingman type.

Olivares was officially released by the Mets earlier this week to pursue the overseas opportunity after signing a minor league contract last month with New York. The 28-year-old struggled to a .624 OPS with five homers and one steal in 55 games last year for the Pirates. He’ll attempt to turn his career around and rebuild his long-term value over in

Murakami is a power-hitting 24-year-old from Japan who is likely to join an MLB team in 2026. Kay believes that the Yankees’ one-year contract with Paul Goldschmidt is a stopgap measure until they can land Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or Murakami in the off-season. At 6'2" and 215 pounds, Murakami has the frame to hit for power in MLB games and did hit 56 home runs with a .318/.458/.711 slash line as a 22-year-old in 2022. He has failed to match those numbers since, but he did hit 33 home runs with a .472 slugging percentage in 2024, so the power remains. How he does in 2025 will determine just how much money he’s set to make when he comes stateside in 2026.

Nevin got into a career-high 87 contests this past season for the Athletics, batting .204/.288/.331 with seven homers and one steal in 278 plate appearances. The 27-year-old first baseman hasn’t hit for enough power at the highest level to warrant consideration for an everyday opportunity, but it wouldn’t be shocking if he wound up excelling overseas in Japan’s hitter-friendly environment.

Wingenter will take his talents overseas after being non-tendered a couple weeks ago by the Cubs. The hard-throwing 30-year-old righty reliever has made 97 appearances in the big leagues dating back to 2018.

Hart has garnered plenty of interest this offseason as he appears poised to return to the majors following a highly successful stint in Korea where he compiled a sparkling 2.69 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 182/38 K/BB ratio across 157 innings (26 starts). The 32-year-old southpaw rode an uptick in fastball velocity to improved results overseas and is most likely going to get an opportunity somewhere as a back-end rotation option or versatile swingman. He’s an interesting name to watch on the pitching market in the coming weeks.