According to MLB Network’s Jon Morosi, two-time NPB Pacific League batting champ Masataka Yoshida will likely be posted to Major League Baseball in the coming weeks. Could the Atlanta Braves be interested in the Japanese star for their issues in left field?
It’s no secret that the Atlanta Braves might be looking for reinforcements in left field for 2023. With Robbie Grossman no longer part of the team as he awaits offers in free agency, Marcell Ozuna being paid $16 million per year to be worth negative value, and Eddie Rosario finishing bottom-10 in baseball in fWAR, it’s frankly the team’s worst-covered position.
However, viable reinforcement could be posted to the league’s free-agent pool soon. Masataka Yoshida is a 29-year-old left fielder of the Orix Buffaloes in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball Pacific League who plans to make the move to the MLB.
Yoshida will have his fair share of suitors. He is an Olympic gold medalist and two-time batting champion, has led the Pacific League in OPS the last two seasons, and recently broke the Buffaloes’ 26-year championship drought with a walk-off home run. Career-wise, he’s slashed .327/.421/.539 with a .960 OPS and 133 home runs in seven seasons.
29-year-old outfielder Masataka Yoshida has a 1.007 OPS in 121 games in Japan this season
— Farm To Fame (@FarmToFame_) November 3, 2022
He plans to sign with an MLB team this offseason pic.twitter.com/XKoWRyxQYB
Perhaps even more striking regarding Yoshida’s play is his lack of a tendency to strikeout, only doing so 97 times in 1,467 plate appearances. If the Braves are looking for a table-setter to get on base for their overwhelming lineup of power hitters, this could very well be up their alley.
However, Japanese players are generally predictable when it comes to their preferences after being posted to the MLB. An overwhelming amount of players have moved to the West or the Northeast like Shohei Ohtani, Ichiro Suzuki, Masahiro Tanaka, Kenta Maeda, Yusei Kikuchi, and Hideki Matsui.
Rarely, if ever, do they move to the Southeast. This is especially true of the Atlanta Braves, who have hardly delved into the Japanese market since the disaster that was Kenshin Kawakami.
Kawakami, who was an NPB Central League MVP, champion, and superstar with over 1,000 career strikeouts, was only mediocre for the Atlanta Braves in his age-34 debut season in 2009, posting a 3.86 ERA and a negative 7-12 record. Kawakami would only spend one more year with the team – and in the majors as a whole – as he struggled his way to a 5.15 ERA and a 1-10 overall record.
If anything, Kawakami is an example that NPB stats should be taken with a grain of salt – some are indicative, others aren’t. However, Masataka Yoshida entering his physical prime, having shocking hitting consistency on his side, and clearly being a clutch player should all factor in his favor.
The New York Yankees are currently the favorites for Yoshida. In fact, it would be relatively easy to construct an argument as to why the Braves won’t sign him. However, in this particular case, we’ll look at the reasons they should and could sign him.
Here’s the case for the Atlanta Braves to sign Masataka Yoshida.
When Yoshida is posted, he will have 30 days to negotiate with Major League clubs. Due to the fact that he has ample professional experience, there will not be limitations on international spending when it comes to his signature.
If Yoshida were to negotiate and sign with the Atlanta Braves, he would instantly become the club’s starting left fielder. With the DH being instituted league-wide as of last season, the Braves wouldn’t have to worry about him potentially needing to DH in his later seasons.
If he’s particularly successful, he might also bring with him a passionate Japanese viewer base, which has seen clubs like the Angels, with Shohei Ohtani, bring in a ton of international attention and sponsorship opportunities.
In terms of what Yoshida might get paid, it would be prudent to judge his future contract on last year’s superstar out of NPB, Seiya Suzuki, and his 5-year, $85 million dollar deal. If the Braves decide to re-sign Dansby Swanson or potentially go after a big-name starting pitcher like one Jacob deGrom, then a deal of around $17 million yearly for an MLB-unproven left fielder may not be in the cards.
However, there have been rumblings, particularly from Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos, that the Braves have confidence in young shortstop Vaugh Grissom eventually becoming an everyday player. Additionally, Anthopoulos has mentioned that the 5th starting spot in the rotation will be “up for grabs,” potentially signaling a possibility that the Braves may not spend there, either.
If both of those outcomes were to come to fruition, then the path could be cleared for the Braves to spend on their next most glaring need in left field. Of course, those conditions don’t have to be met for the Braves to put in an offer for Yoshida, but it certainly might help if they find themselves with extra cash to work with.
Yoshida, smack dab in the middle of his prime, could very possibly improve the Atlanta Braves lineup and make it more versatile. Joining a team in the middle of its championship window seems like the perfect fit for him.
Do you agree that the Braves should put in an offer for Yoshida? If not, who should it be? Feel free to open a discussion as we anxiously await the team’s next moves.