Insider Hints At 'Best Case Scenario' For Red Sox's $90M Star In Rafael Devers Saga

The drama surrounding Boston Red Sox designated hitter Rafael Devers affects everyone on the roster in different ways.

For some, Devers' public refusal to play first base is just a source of possible discontent. It can be hard for a player to see a teammate decline a chance to help his organization win. But for others, it has a direct impact on playing time.

There are players one side of the equation, like Nick Sogard and Abraham Toro, who are currently getting a chance to start games in the majors at first when they would otherwise be in Triple-A. But the flipside is that the DH slot remains occupied, denying others an avenue to the lineup.

Remember Masataka Yoshida? The Red Sox paid him $90 million to be their left fielder two years ago, but he was limited to full-time DH duties in 2024. Then, he underwent offseason shoulder surgery, which has him on the injured list despite taking at-bats against major league pitching months ago in spring training.

On Monday, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe discussed how Devers eventually moving to first base would give the Red Sox a spot to put Yoshida while he's still building up his throwing arm and potentially help them put their best lineup on the field.

"Yoshida is a (5-foot-8) outfielder who hasn’t played all season as he recovers from shoulder surgery. Making his life even more complicated by changing positions is a bad idea," Abraham wrote.

"The best-case scenario for Yoshida at this point — beyond a trade — would be Devers moving to first and Yoshida getting a chance to DH. Otherwise, it’ll be more rehab until Yoshida is deemed ready to play the outfield, and where would he fit in the outfield?"

Yoshida, 31, might not be worth $18 million per year from a production standpoint, but he's much better than Sogard or Toro. He's a career .285 hitter with a .433 slugging percentage, and there have been times when he's gotten hot enough to carry Boston's offense alone.

The situation with Devers has to be handled delicately from this point forward. But the Red Sox can't lose sight of Yoshida and his potential to impact games, which had to be the impetus for asking Devers to move to first base to begin with.