2012 MLB Free Agency: Yoennis Cespedes, Top International Signing Targets

It was announced today that Cuban slugger and recent defector Yoennis Cespedes will likely be ruled a free agent and sign with an MLB club this offseason.

He has been hailed as the slugging equivalent of Aroldis Chapman and will likely command a deal similar to the five-year, $25.25 million contract that Chapman signed prior to the 2010 season.

However, he is not the only highly sought-after international player on the market this offseason, as there are a number of players who will command multi-year contracts for a good deal of money.

Here is a look at five players to know who could be making their way to the States this offseason.

Lead photo courtesy of Cuban National Baseball Series.

SP Wei-Ying Chen

Born in Taiwan and an Olympian for Chinese Taipei, Chen is now pitching for the Chunichi Dragons of the Japan Central League.

That fact has made his contract a bit of a question mark, and while the 24-year-old is expected to be an international free agent without a posting fee, it may take him "retiring" before he can negotiate with big league teams.

He is a soft-thrower who pitches to contact, and it remains to be seen how his stuff will play against big-league hitters but he has been dominant in five years with Chunichi.

He is capable of hitting 95 with his fastball, but sits in the high-80s, so he could potentially be developed into a strikeout pitcher.

SP Tsuyoshi Wada

A 30-year-old left-hander who pitches for the Softbank Hawks of the Japan Pacific League will be an international free agent this coming season, meaning there will be no posting fee when it comes to negotiating with him.

Last season was his fourth professional year and the best of his career, as he went 17-8 with a 3.14 ERA while striking out a batter an inning.

Wada appears to have the confidence and swagger to make it in a big market, and his marriage to singer/actress Kasumi Nakane makes him seem tailor-made for somewhere like New York.

SP Hisashi Iwakuma

As though the dangers of the posting fee were not realized by the major disappointment that was Daisuke Matsuzaka, the Athletics were burned big-time last year when they spent $19.1 million to negotiate with Hisashi Iwakuma only to fail to reach a contract with him.

That means he is now an international free agent this coming season, and will not require another posting fee to negotiate with him.

In four seasons with the Rakuten Golden Eagles, Iwakuma had a 49-24 record with a 2.72 ERA and it will be interesting to see who all gets in on negotiating for the 30-year-old now that he is a standard free agent.

CF Yoennis Cespedes

According to his agent Adam Katz, Cuban free agent Yoennis Cespedes is the Aroldis Chapman of position players when comes to Cuban-born talents.

Cespedes hit .333/.427/.667, 33 HR, 99 RBI, 89 R in 90 games last season as he broke the single-season home run record.

The 26-year-old released a 20-minute video displaying his talents that has since been pulled by his agent but it was one of the odder things you'll see if you can find a link to it. Still, his talent is for real and he looks to be big-league ready.

SP Yu Darvish

The most hyped-up foreign-born player since Daisuke Matsuzaka, if the Nippon-Ham Fighters decide to post Yu Darvish, he will be the wild card of the offseason.

At just 25 years old, Darvish has already established himself as the best pitcher in Japan with a career line of 76-28 with a 1.72 ERA and 9.5 K/9.

He had the best season of his career last year, as he went 18-6 with a 1.44 ERA and 276 strikeouts in 232 innings pitched.

His fastball sits in the mid-90s and he has a fantastic slurve that serves as his strikeout pitch. Those two are plus pitches, but he also throws five other pitches to keep hitters off balance.

With his posting fee, his deal could approach $100 million, but he could very well prove to be worth it.