According to Massachusetts Live on the 30th (Korean time), Boston manager Alex Cora noted that Yoshida's shoulder rehabilitation status is "not good this week. He has not been throwing well." Boston, currently on a six-game road trip, will return home on the 3rd, where head trainer Brandon Henry will check Yoshida's shoulder condition directly.

Yoshida underwent surgery on his right shoulder labrum in October of last year and has been rehabilitating. In spring training as a designated hitter, he achieved a batting average of .286 with 10 hits in 35 at-bats, 1 home run, and 7 RBIs, which was not a bad hitting performance. However, he was placed on the injured list at the start of the season. He is in a condition where he cannot take the field due to pain when throwing. Cora stated, "Yoshida has to play defense. We brought him in as an outfielder," and mentioned that he would be called up when he is capable of playing outfield defense.

From a hitting standpoint, Yoshida could have been used as a designated hitter like last year, but Boston's team situation has changed. Before the season, they signed star third baseman Alex Bregman as a free agent, moving star hitter Rafael Devers to designated hitter. Devers initially resisted the position change, but accepted the situation and started the season with 0 hits in 19 at-bats and 15 strikeouts, marking the worst start. However, after that, he bounced back with a batting average of .260 in 31 games (25 hits in 96 at-bats), 5 home runs, and 17 RBIs, leading the Boston lineup alongside Bregman (batting average of .331, 6 home runs, 23 RBIs).

For Yoshida to play, he ultimately needs to recover his shoulder condition and aim for a corner outfield position. However, now that a month has passed since the start of the season, Yoshida has not even been able to play in minor league rehab games. Rehabilitation is taking longer than expected, and projections suggest that a return is at the earliest possible by the end of May. If the results of the follow-up examination are unfavorable, it could be postponed further.

Even if he recovers his shoulder condition, Yoshida's situation is not bright. Jarren Duran occupies the left field position, which is Yoshida's main position. Although Duran can also play center field, promising prospect Roman Anthony is establishing himself in center field. The team's top prospect, outfielder Roman Anthony, is also waiting to be called up from Triple-A, making Yoshida's position in Boston quite limited.

While being traded would be a good path for both the team and Yoshida, this is not easy either. After the 2022 season, Yoshida signed a massive five-year, $90 million contract with Boston following the posting system. He entered Major League Baseball with the highest treatment among Asian hitters who went through the posting system before Lee Jung-hoo (six years, $113 million), who arrived a year later, and he has three years and $54 million left on his contract, including this year. There were trade rumors last winter, but they did not happen due to the high remaining salary. The uncertainty surrounding Yoshida's physical condition adds to the difficult atmosphere.

In his first year in Major League Baseball in 2023, Yoshida had a batting average of .289 with 155 hits in 537 at-bats, 15 home runs, and 72 RBIs with an OPS of .783, which was disappointing compared to his worth, but he managed to go through an adaptation period. Last year, he had a batting average of .280 in 108 games (106 hits in 378 at-bats), 10 home runs, and 56 RBIs with an OPS of .765. Although shoulder injuries played a role, even before the injury, his outfield defense was weak, and he was slow on the bases, leading to disappointing results as a hitter who could only rely on hitting. As his shoulder rehabilitation drags on, Yoshida's contract increasingly leans toward failure.

2023년 메이저리그 첫 해 140경기 타율 2할8푼9리(537타수 155안타) 15홈런 72타점 OPS .783으로 몸값에 비해 아쉬웠지만 나름 적응기를 보낸 요시다는 지난해 108경기 타율 2할8푼(378타수 106안타) 10홈런 56타점 OPS .765로 부진했다. 어깨 부상 여파도 있었지만 부상 전에도 외야 수비가 약하고, 발도 느려 타격 하나만으로 승부해야 하는 타자로는 아쉬운 성적이었다. 어깨 재활이 길어지면서 요시다의 계약은 점점 실패로 기울어가고 있다.

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