Fewer foreign-born players in the Bigs

According to the Associated Press, the percentage of foreign-born players is down slightly in 2004, after six seasons of increases. Of the 830 players on opening day Major League rosters, 27.3 percent were born outside the United States. That is 227 players, down from 230 last season. No Europeans yet. Two from the Netherlands Antilles, though, and one from the Dutch dependency of Aruba: Sidney Ponson, who was knighted by Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands last year.