The Boston Red Sox have added a slugger to their lineup in the form of Willson Contreras, as they traded for him Sunday.
Contreras is expected to fill a major role in the Red Sox lineup as it has been reported throughout the offseason that they were looking to add two big bats.
Now, Deesha Thosar believes it’s only a matter of time this winter before Boston trades Masataka Yoshida.
“Now, more than ever, Masataka Yoshida looks like the odd man out,” Thosar wrote for Fox Sports. “The lefty-swinging Fukui, Japan, native will see the majority of his batting opportunities go to Contreras and Casas. Yoshida has spent his two seasons with the Red Sox in left field as well as DH, but they now have a surplus of players clogging up the outfield, with Roman Anthony, Jarren Duran and Ceddanne Rafaela leading the pack.”
She added that Yoshida will be difficult to move as his numbers weren’t the greatest last season. He recorded a 93 OPS+ in just 188 at-bats last season for the Red Sox and only appeared in 55 games. Pair that with the $37.2 million he will be paid over the next two seasons, and it certainly won’t be easy for Craig Breslow to move on from him.
If Boston can find a trade partner, it’s likely the Red Sox would have to supply some money to justify another team taking on Yoshida’s contract. This would be the case especially if he winds up on a small-market team that doesn’t have a budget like Boston.
There may be some teams willing to take a flyer on him for next season, but those options won’t be plentiful as the Red Sox look to move on from a player they thought was going to be much more impactful than he has been.
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