MLB insider hints at drastic Red Sox-Masataka Yoshida decision if daily role doesn't materialize

Opening Day has come and gone, and the Boston Red Sox are still committed to fielding five outfielders this season.

Roman Anthony, Wilyer Abreu, Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela and Masataka Yoshida all deserve regular playing time. Red Sox manager Alex Cora is confident he can give it to them and he plans to cycle Anthony, Duran and Yoshida between left field and the designated hitter spot (Abreu and Rafaela will maintain their usual spots in right and center field, respectively, as their Gold Glove-winning defense is far too important to shuffle around).

Like many fans, MLB insider Ken Rosenthal doesn't see how Cora can make his plan work. He thinks the Red Sox could soon take drastic measures to clear their outfield logjam.

"There is no place for Masataka Yoshida on the Red Sox, there simply isn't," Rosenthal said on the Opening Day episode of the "Fair Territory" podcast. "...I don't know where this is going. He seems like a DFA waiting to happen."

MLB insider Ken Rosenthal calls Red Sox's Masataka Yoshida "a DFA waiting to happen"

Rosenthal isn't the first person to speculate that Boston might designate Yoshida for assignment, and he won't be the last. Red Sox insider Sean McAdam sees a cut coming because Yoshida is "limited." He acknowledged that such a move would be a shame, however, because there have been no complaints about Yoshida's effort or character from the organization.

The Red Sox have already announced that Yoshida will get his first start on March 29, the final game of their season-opening series against the Cincinnati Reds. Cora has attested on multiple occasions that Yoshida is one of the most talented hitters in Boston's lineup when he's healthy, which has been the main trouble of Yoshida's tenure with the team — he's never played more than 140 games in a season since his 2023 Red Sox debut.

Yoshida had a solid spring and posted another excellent performance for Team Japan in the World Baseball Classic, so he should be in prime form when his first start comes around. He's batted .282/.337/.425 over 303 games in his Red Sox career, which are solid numbers by every metric.

Red Sox fans won't have to wait much longer to see how their outfield logjam will play out. Anthony is an up-and-coming star in MLB and Duran has been in the MVP conversation once before — it may be hard to justify taking innings from them, but Yoshida may not be easily denied.