Behind the scenes, the Red Sox clearly have a plan for Masataka Yoshida. They haven't exactly telegraphed what that plan is, but given the information we have it feels like Yoshida's days in Boston are numbered.
To be fair, it's felt like that for a while. But with the news that top prospect Kristian Campbell has made the Opening Day roster and the assumption that Roman Anthony isn't far behind, it's tough to find a consistent path to playing time for Yoshida in 2025. He's going to start the year in Triple-A while rehabbing from shoulder surgery and it's not clear that he'll be ready to take on full-time outfield duties when he returns. And with Rafael Devers headed to the DH spot, Yoshida is blocked just about everywhere.
We've spent what feels like a year trying to find a speculative trade partner that the Sox could do business with and ship Yoshida out. Could the Sox move him without eating a portion of his contract? Unlikely, but it'll still take some creativity from Craig Breslow to find a deal that makes sense.
Here are 3 potential trade destinations for Red Sox outfielder Masataka Yoshida
This first potential landing spot might be a questionable fit because their outfield is skewed left-handed already but Yoshida feels like the type of offensive upgrade that the Brewers need. Sal Frelick has been a strong defender but he's been ineffective at the plate over the last two seasons. Same with Blake Perkins, plus the latter will start the year on the IL as he heals from a fractured shin. Yoshida is a better hitter than either and both he and Christian Yelich could split time between left field and DH, with one of Frelick or Perkins in a bench role.
The biggest roadblock to a deal with Milwaukee would be the money. Yoshida is owed roughly $56 million over the next three years. His $18.6 million AAV would be the second highest number on their roster, so it's safe to assume that the Sox would have to eat a bunch of money to get Matt Arnold and the Brewers interested. At the moment, it's not clear Boston is willing to do that but they might have to if they want to move Yoshida. Despite the Brewers' frugality, adding another OBP-oriented hitter would go a long way toward fighting off the the Cubs in what should be a tight divisional race in 2025.
Sticking with questionable fits, while the Rockies have some cheaper options than Yoshida, none of them are inspiring. Their current plan seems to be running out the pair of Nick Martini and Sam Hilliard while they wait for Zac Veen to debut. Unfortunately, Veen had a .281 OBP at Triple-A last year and struck out over 30% of the time this spring. They also have Greg Jones and Yanquiel Fernandez in Triple-A, though Jones ran a 35% strikeout rate last year and whiffed in 9 of his 13 spring plate appearances and Fernandez hit .211/.268/.313 in 138 plate appearances at Triple-A in 2024.
Is creating a Yoshida/Kris Bryant DH platoon in Colorado an advisable strategy? Well, no. But the Rockies have nothing to lose and their pipeline is thin enough that Yoshida could be a viable stopgap while Colorado works their way through a difficult rebuild. Like with a Milwaukee trade, the Red Sox might have to pay down a significant portion of Yoshida's remaining salary to get a deal done here. Despite Yoshida's flaws, he'd make the Rockies better and provide some stability to a challenged lineup.
One final potential landing spot is Kansas City. If the Royals want to make it back to the postseason in 2025, their lineup is going to need some help. They acquired Jonathan India earlier this offseason, a strong OBP guy who will help create more opportunities for the offense. But in reality, this group is heavily reliant on Bobby Witt Jr. If Witt takes any kind of step back in 2025, this team will be in trouble.
MJ Melendez has hit .221/.303/.397 in 412 career games and he's slated to be the starter in left field on Opening Day. Hunter Renfroe is 33 and coming off back to back years with a sub .300 OBP. Dairon Blanco is best used as a pinch runner. Mark Canha is 36. Yoshida isn't perfect but he'd help this team compete. The Royals are set to run their highest payroll since 2017 but they're $70 million under the first CBT threshold. Kansas City might be one of the few teams out there that could take on Yoshida's full contract and truly benefit from his performance.