Masastaka Yoshida had a decent rookie season in 2023, but a rather forgettable 2024 season thus far. There was a span last year when he had an incredible month. He has had 22 hits so far this season, and just as he was getting into a rhythm offensively, he was stifled with an injury to his thumb, caused by a ball that hit him.
Yoshida, quite to the contrary, is not a bad outfielder. The problem with all this metrics nonsense is that it does not cover the ultimate true results, influencing decisions about who is good and bad. The truth of the matter is that Yoshida only had 3 errors in 2023. He may not be the best outfielder, but he is not the worst. Alex Cora does not understand Yoshida as a player. He is not letting him get into a rhythm by benching him in some of the games in favor of another DH. He is the kind of hitter who gets into streaks. We've seen this in Japan, in the World Baseball Classic, and part of last season.
Alex Cora clearly does not understand that for Yoshida to become a .300 hitter, Yoshida has to be playing every day. That is, to play in the outfield, alternating between the outfield and DH position. Only through this can Yoshida become the player he was expected to be. Even with this, Yoshida hit 30 points above the league average as a hitter last season. He slowly leveled up his batting average to .275 before he went down with a thumb issue.
It should not be much longer until Yoshida can rejoin the Red Sox.
What should you expect?
The end result depends on various factors such as how Cora manages his playing time. If Yoshida just DH, he could struggle for a while. If he plays sometime in the outfield, he could show results as a hitter twice as fast; however, if Yoshida just DH and then sits the next game, well, it cuts the rhythm he solely depends on, therefore, the results will not be as good. One strategy for Alex Cora to optimize Yoshida's playing time could be to rotate him between the outfield and DH positions regularly. This would allow Yoshida to stay in the rhythm he depends on as a hitter while also allowing him to play daily. Another strategy could be to prioritize Yoshida's playing time against pitchers he has historically performed well against, maximizing his chances of success at the plate.
Yoshida is an elite hitter who depends on rhythm. He cannot get into a rhythm if he plays, then is benched, then plays. For instance, if he got 3 hits the previous day, you don't bench him for the game today. And, if he gets 1 hit today, he could get 2 or 3 hits tomorrow. He doesn't strike out that much, although he has on occasion and more frequently at the MLB level than in the NPB, but still quite low even at the MLB level.
Yoshida does not have a great throwing arm, but he still is not as bad an outfielder as people have claimed he is.
The Boston Red Sox should make a trade for Yoshida if they don't really know how to maximize his potential. If metrics were such a concern, then so be it. Trade him to a team that needs a hitter who can potentially hit .340. This nonsense about Yoshida being a bad outfielder has got to stop. He is not a great outfielder, but he is far from being a bad one. He is not going to throw a picture-perfect ball to home plate. How many outfielders do you know who can do that with pinpoint precision every time anyway? I can think of only one: Ichiro. And he is long retired. What Yoshida does is hold runners at bay. He had 3 errors in 2023 with a FPCT of .977. That's almost 98%. So, a team benching him because of his fielding just does not make any sense.
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