Masataka Yoshida on trade rumors for the second straight offseason: ‘It’s out of my control’
It’s been no secret the Red Sox have been trying to trade outfielder/designated hitter Masataka Yoshida. Boston has been unsuccessful in their attempts to move him, mainly because he’s owed $55.8 million over the next three seasons and he’s below average in the outfield.
Yoshida has not been immune to the trade rumors and knows there’s a possibility the team could move him before Opening Day.
“I kind of kept (the rumors) muted, so I wasn’t really paying attention,” Yoshida deadpanned through interpreter Yutaro Yamaguchi at Fenway Fest on Saturday afternoon. “I did pay attention to those, but it’s out of my control, so we’ll see what happens.”
One of the other reasons the Red Sox have flirted with the idea of trading Yoshida is their desire to balance out their lineup because the team is too left-handed. The Sox attempted to trade Yoshida to the Mariners with Triston Casas for right-handed pitcher Luis Castillo. Boston wanted Seattle to absorb the remaining money of Yoshida’s deal and hoped that by attaching Casas, it wouldn’t have sweetened the pot.
Ultimately the deal never came to fruition, and the Red Sox traded for Garrett Crochet and signed Walker Buehler.
Yoshida has been in Boston this offseason rehabbing back from surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder.
“He’s been in Boston rehabbing and went home (to Japan) for the holidays,” said Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow to reporters in late December. “He’ll be back in January. He’s making a ton of progress, and again, it’s really hard to nail down a specific date when he’ll be completely healthy, but I feel like he should be swinging in spring training, potentially ready for Opening Day. And then we’ll figure out in what capacity that will be.”
In his second big league season, Yoshida played 108 games and had 421 at-bats, serving as a designated hitter, slashed .280/.349/.415 with 10 homers and 56 RBIs. He missed action from April 29 through June 10, battling through discomfort in his right shoulder but also a left thumb strain.
“I obviously haven’t played up to fans’ expectations yet,” Yoshida said. “All of the stats and results I had in Japan are not as reflected as I’d hoped. Obviously, I want to play up to their expectations and keep improving.”
