Newly Acquired Red Sox Slugger Shines In Historic World Baseball Classic Run
All eyes were on the World Baseball Classic this March, allowing a newly-acquired Boston Red Sox slugger to be vaulted into stardom.
Japan went undefeated at the WBC after a thrilling 3-2 championship game win over the USA on Tuesday night in Miami.
Shohei Ohtani struck out Mike Trout to seal the team's third WBC title -- no other country has claimed two. This run would not have been possible without the contributions of one of the Red Sox's more prominent offseason additions, Masataka Yoshida.
The new left fielder for Boston shined on the global stage and caught the attention of Major League Baseball fans all over the world.
Yoshida hit .409 with three extra-base hits including two home runs, four walks and a 1.258 OPS across seven games. The 29-year-old logged a WBC record 13 RBIs and only struck out once in 32 plate appearances.
He had many moments in the tournament but no swing was bigger than his game-tying, three-run blast late in the semifinal game against Mexico.
Japan likely wouldn't have even made it to the title game without that swing by Yoshida. And it's safe to say the big swing had Red Sox fans hoping for similar results in his rookie season that kicks off at Fenway in a little over a week.
Even known unbiased baseball reporter Jeff Passan expects big things from Yoshida in Boston.
"Masataka Yoshida is going to be very good for the Boston Red Sox this year," Passan tweeted moments after the home run.
After the conclusion of the tournament, Yoshida was named to the All-WBC Team. He is joined by fellow Red Sox teammate Yu Chang, who had a remarkable run with Chinese Taipei in Group A play.
It was one thing to hear about what Yoshida could bring to this Red Sox team right after they signed him in December, but there's more reason to be optimistic about his potential after what he just did these past two weeks.
Yes, it's a small sample size, but on one of the biggest stages that baseball has to offer. Yoshida looked extremely calm and performed at a very high level in front of some of the wildest crowds in the history of the game.
I'm very much looking forward to the reaction Yoshida receives at Opening Day at Fenway Park next Friday. And for the sake of this team, I hope he has a great start to his MLB career.
With the current look of this Red Sox roster, and the subtractions from this past offseason, they may desperately need the power and offensive contributions that Yoshida is capable of.
Either way, that was a thrilling tournament to watch and it was definitely a win for Red Sox fans that their team's top free agent signing was a vital piece to a championship run.
More MLB: Ex-Red Sox Brock Holt Gives Encouraging Update Regarding Broadcasting Career
