Just because Spring Training is here doesn’t mean that moves are done being made around the league.
There are still a handful of intriguing free agents still available, including Lucas Giolito, Max Scherzer and Zack Littell, among others. As we inch closer to Opening Day, we will see more trades getting done around the league as well, although it will be surprising to see anything game-changing get done.
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The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported on Monday that the Boston Red Sox have ruled out making another addition. Another thing that Rosenthal noted was that Masataka Yoshida still could be traded in a salary dump situation.
The Red Sox may not be done making moves
“[Craig Breslow] is not ruling out another offensive addition; no head of baseball operations ever considers his work completely done,” Rosenthal wrote. “The Red Sox still could trade from their relative surplus of starting pitchers. (Patrick Sandoval? Brayan Bello?) They also could move an outfielder, most likely Duran, to open up DH at-bats for the Sox’s invisible man, Masataka Yoshida. With Duran and Anthony expected to split the left-field and DH roles, the Sox also could do the same type of salary dump with Yoshida that they did with righty Jordan Hicks. …
“None of this needs to be decided today. Heck, none of it needs to be decided before the trade deadline Aug. 3. The Sox play this out, see how their offense takes shape, then determine if they require upgrades. Who knows? Maybe Breslow’s optimism will be well-founded, and the Sox offense will be better than anyone anticipated, just as it was in 2010. Or maybe Bregman will be the next Betts, a player the Sox regret losing over and over again.”
MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo reported on Feb. 15 that there was “tangible” trade interest in Yoshida and his performance in Spring Training games would impact whether a deal could get done.
“According to sources with knowledge of the Red Sox’ thinking, there has been tangible trade interest in Yoshida throughout the winter, with teams recognizing his offensive upside (and the opportunity cost) in discussing him with Boston. Still, considering Yoshida’s limits in 2025 (he got just 205 regular season plate appearances after returning from the injured list) coming off labrum surgery, the Sox might have to wait to make a move. Two sources cautioned that teams who might want to deal for Yoshida likely want to see how he does in spring training games before increasing their aggressiveness.”
The Red Sox traded Jordan Hicks to the Chicago White Sox in a salary dump. Yoshida can really hit, but he has his downsides defensively. One thing that would help Yoshida’s case is a big performance in the upcoming World Baseball Classic. That’s what the front office should be hoping for right now because there isn’t a path to playing time. Yoshida signed a five-year, $90 million deal with Red Sox that still has two seasons left. It sounds like there’s at least a chance a deal could get done before Opening Day.
