The Boston Red Sox were in on Aaron Judge before he re-signed with the New York Yankees in MLB free agency earlier on Tuesday. Like clockwork, Boston turned its attention to a foreign sensation by the name of Masataka Yoshida who one former MLB All-Star recently called the “Japenese Juan Soto.”
According to multiple media reports, Boston has inked the 29-year-old Yoshida to a five-year, $90 million contract. Including his posting fee from the Orix Buffaloes of the Nippon Professional Baseball League, this deal will cost the Red Sox a total of $105.4 million.
It might be worth it for a retooling team given Yoshida’s performance in the highest league Japan has to offer.
- Masataka Yoshida stats (career): 7 seasons, 135 HR, 474 RBI, .326/.419/.538
This past seasons saw Yoshida hit .336 with 21 HR while posting an absurd 1.007 OPS in Japan. He’s won the batting title each of the past two seasons, too.
For the Boston Red Sox, Yoshida figures to be their lead-off hitter as a rookie in 2023. It’s an area the team struggled in during what was an 84-loss 2022 campaign. There’s also a need in both center field and right field in Boston’s lineup.