Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Red Sox, Cruz, Angels, Jays, Braves

On this date 14 years ago, Hideo Nomo signed with the Dodgers after "retiring" from professional baseball in Japan, becoming the first Japanese player in the big leagues in over 30 years. Nomo would go on to win 123 games in 12 big league seasons, including two no-hitters. Since then, at least 25 other pitchers have made the jump from Japan to the U.S. and Nomo is arguably still the best to make the move. With several big names still looking for their own big league contract, let’s take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…

• Fire Brand of the American League speculates on some in-season trade targets for the Red Sox.
• MLB Notebook takes a look at the players most affected by the recent signings of Bobby Abreu and Adam Dunn.
• Jorge Says No! takes a look at the market for Juan Cruz.
• The Sports Banter reflects on what they consider to be a "disappointing" offseason for the Angels.
• UmpBump recaps the offseason for the Blue Jays and looks at their projected lineup.
• Braves Blast rummages through the scraps of what is left for the Braves outfield now that most of the big names have signed elsewhere.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here.