How Red Sox Could Cut Ties With $90 Million Veteran

It wouldn't be easy, but it might be doable

Sep 20, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox designated hitter Masataka Yoshida (7) hits an rbi single against the Tampa Bay Rays in the ninth inning at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Boston Red Sox entered salary-shedding mode on Sunday, but are they still in the thick of that pursuit?

Signing Ranger Suárez earlier this month brought the Red Sox temporarily over the $264 million second luxury tax threshold, which would be the highest mark in franchise history and impose extra penalties on payroll. Perhaps they're eventually comfortable being at that level, but not with the roster they had on hand.

Upon trading Jordan Hicks and cash considerations to the Chicago White Sox, the Red Sox dropped $8 million from their luxury tax payroll this season. They were back under the second threshold as of Tuesday, but there's still one more obvious salary dump candidate -- Masataka Yoshida.

Trading Yoshida not just about saving payroll

Sep 30, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; Boston Red Sox outfielder Masataka Yoshida (7) hits a two run single during the seventh inning against the New York Yankees during game one of the Wildcard round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Yoshida is slated to count as an $18 million luxury tax hit both this year and next. The blueprint to trading him isn't easy, but as was all but confirmed by insider Chris Cotillo of MassLive on Monday, that blueprint would look the same as the Hicks deal.

"Moving Masataka Yoshida (and his $18 million CBT) hit would likely require the Red Sox to take on a good portion of his deal while attaching a prospect like they did with (David) Sandlin and Hicks," Cotillo wrote.

Sandlin was a top-10 organizational prospect for the Red Sox, though his stock wasn't necessarily at its highest point by the end of the season. But if we consider him to be the price of a team eating $8 million, with that team also sending back a lower-level prospect, the Yoshida price could be immense.

On one hand, the Red Sox have already depleted their farm system plenty this offseason, and one figures that if Yoshida were to go, the Red Sox would either be giving up a better prospect than Sandlin or paying the outfielder/designated hitter more than half his salary to play for someone else.

But considering the total logjam the Red Sox have at outfielder and designated hitter, it may be worthwhile to ship out Yoshida. Otherwise, on a day when everyone was healthy, putting Yoshida in the lineup would necessitate benching two of Ceddanne Rafaela, Wilyer Abreu, Jarren Duran, and Triston Casas.

For the sake of roster harmony, following the salary dump blueprint one more time is definitely worth considering.

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