Article: Boston Red Sox Arbitration Decisions & Projections: Triston Casas

[drewski6]

14 hours ago, Duran Is The Man said:

 i attended over 100 baseball games this year -69 Travelers in Little Rock, AR (i have season tickets) along with Rainers games in OKC, Sugarland, ABQ, El Paso, Round Rock & Las Vegas and a Seattle series in KC. so yeah, i know exactly who they are.

this is awesome

[drewski6]

2 hours ago, notin said:

Casas actually isnt the slowest player in MLB, but he got closer to that honor with the retirement of Martin Maldonado.   He is in the bottom 10 per StatCast.   Not the bottom ten percent.  The bottom 10…

Is kirk #1 slowest? Gary sanchez?

[drewski6]

3 hours ago, Hugh2 said:

The same money? so you want to give Casas a 16-17 million dollar raise? Casas is under team control. He offers significantly more upside than Casas, but yes if Casas doens't look good or healhty I'd rather have Yoshida as well. 

No, for the same money, I meant all else being equal, as in take any financial commitment out of the equation.

Who do I feel has a better chance of helping this team next year: yoshida or casas - im choosing yoshida

yoshida is like capable of running.

I think the chance of casas getting and staying healthy is near 10%, masas like 40%. And if they are both healthy, I think give masa two weeks to learn 1b and hes better than casas

I think casas doesnt have the body or athleticism to play professional sports

I think Masa could be a kinda-decent 1b, just no pop which obv stinks and im not advocating for that.

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

10 minutes ago, drewski6 said:

I think Masa could be a kinda-decent 1b, just no pop which obv stinks and im not advocating for that.

Yoshida will be in his element by the start of next season, because there's another WBC, where Mass Attacker is a stud! Everyone forgets he led the World in RBIs for the World champs in 2023.

Predicting right now that Yoshi will reach career highs in homers in 2026; previous high is 15 in '23 and he will shatter that -- 16, 17, maybe even 18!!

[drewski6]

3 minutes ago, 5GoldGlovesOF,75 said:

Yoshida will be in his element by the start of next season, because there's another WBC, where Mass Attacker is a stud! Everyone forgets he led the World in RBIs for the World champs in 2023.

Predicting right now that Yoshi will reach career highs in homers in 2026; previous high is 15 in '23 and he will shatter that -- 16, 17, maybe even 18!!

I can see Yoshida hitting .280, 19 HR and playing adequate 1b.  I feel comfy in my assessment that yoshida has the better chance to be a ballplayer going forward.

I think we start hearing rumblings of casas getting "close" in like late may, but then like july arrives and everyone is like where is this guy, and maybe similar to yoshida (last year) he comes back in a dh capacity half way through the season, but i think he hurts himself very soon thereafter 

[drewski6]

casas is an option, but not one we should put any reliance in at all.

[moonslav59]

45 minutes ago, drewski6 said:

good points, ive said that im fine with one of schwarber or alonso and letting the casas vs yoshida battle for the other.

I give 0 casas 0 points for first base, as i figure any of the above can play 1b at least as adequately. Especially yoshida (giving up a bit of reach)

Good thing positions don't matter to you!

(Gotcha!)

[Hugh2]

1 hour ago, drewski6 said:

No, for the same money, I meant all else being equal, as in take any financial commitment out of the equation.

Who do I feel has a better chance of helping this team next year: yoshida or casas - im choosing yoshida

yoshida is like capable of running.

I think the chance of casas getting and staying healthy is near 10%, masas like 40%. And if they are both healthy, I think give masa two weeks to learn 1b and hes better than casas

I think casas doesnt have the body or athleticism to play professional sports

I think Masa could be a kinda-decent 1b, just no pop which obv stinks and im not advocating for that.

Look, I'm not super high on Casas by any means.  But he certainly has a much higher ceiling than Yoshida.  If he comes back healthy and was the guy he was for most of 2024 then this team has another middle of the order bat.  Yoshida simply does not have that in him. 

[drewski6]

32 minutes ago, Hugh2 said:

Look, I'm not super high on Casas by any means.  But he certainly has a much higher ceiling than Yoshida.  If he comes back healthy and was the guy he was for most of 2024 then this team has another middle of the order bat.  Yoshida simply does not have that in him. 

Your if is not in the realm of possibility, and the guy he was in 2004 was a 0.6 WAR

Hes now 2 years older than he was when he hurt himself swinging a bat.  ANd 1 year older than he was when he hurt himself jogging. Well, to be fair , he was running when he hurt himself the second time but it was the first time ive ever seen him do it, and it was ugly and im not surprised he got hurt

dudes toast.  masa is overpaid, but casas is toast.

 

[drewski6]

you just cant be THAT uncoordinated.

[notin]

3 hours ago, drewski6 said:

Is kirk #1 slowest? Gary sanchez?

Rowdy Tellez, if he finds work again.  If not, Giancarlo Stanton…

[cp176]

3 hours ago, drewski6 said:

No, for the same money, I meant all else being equal, as in take any financial commitment out of the equation.

Who do I feel has a better chance of helping this team next year: yoshida or casas - im choosing yoshida

yoshida is like capable of running.

I think the chance of casas getting and staying healthy is near 10%, masas like 40%. And if they are both healthy, I think give masa two weeks to learn 1b and hes better than casas

I think casas doesnt have the body or athleticism to play professional sports

I think Masa could be a kinda-decent 1b, just no pop which obv stinks and im not advocating for that.

I would have a very hard time getting rid of Yoshida.  He is a bat to ball contact hitter.  We need to have hitters like him regardless of whether or not he can hit the dingers.  I have no faith in Casas

development.

[notin]

10 hours ago, 5GoldGlovesOF,75 said:

He pitched for a third-place team.

Seattle handed the ball to Hancock in 22 games, so he had value to someone over there. Hancock only had a -0.2 WAR, but that was still better than -0.8 Mariner Bryce Miller, another 26-year old.

I'd still take either over broken-down Buehler at this point.

The Mariners won ONE MORE GAME than the Red Sox did.  And yes, that clearly means they play in a weaker division…

[notin]

7 minutes ago, cp176 said:

I would have a very hard time getting rid of Yoshida.  He is a bat to ball contact hitter.  We need to have hitters like him regardless of whether or not he can hit the dingers.  I have no faith in Casas

development.

With Casas, the question is timeline.  Other than him saying he wants to be ready for opening day, there has been nothing.

It’s nice to see I’m not alone on Yoshida Island…

[moonslav59]

28 minutes ago, notin said:

It’s nice to see I’m not alone on Yoshida Island…

No man is an atoll.

[harmony]

20 hours ago, Duran Is The Man said:

 i attended over 100 baseball games this year -69 Travelers in Little Rock, AR (i have season tickets) along with Rainers games in OKC, Sugarland, ABQ, El Paso, Round Rock & Las Vegas and a Seattle series in KC. so yeah, i know exactly who they are.

It was just odd that one sentence referred to Emerson Hancock by his first name and to Pete Alonso by his last name.

[harmony]

4 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

Good thing positions don't matter to you!

(Gotcha!)

Like targeting Eugenio Suarez to play first base.

[notin]

27 minutes ago, harmony said:

It was just odd that one sentence referred to Emerson Hancock by his first name and to Pete Alonso by his last name.

In both cases, he was avoiding the phallic reference.  Simple as that…

[notin]

5 hours ago, drewski6 said:

I can see Yoshida hitting .280, 19 HR and playing adequate 1b.  I feel comfy in my assessment that yoshida has the better chance to be a ballplayer going forward.

I think we start hearing rumblings of casas getting "close" in like late may, but then like july arrives and everyone is like where is this guy, and maybe similar to yoshida (last year) he comes back in a dh capacity half way through the season, but i think he hurts himself very soon thereafter 

The diminutive Yoshida at 1b? He’s like the only major leaguer that looks up to see Andrew Vaughn!

So yeah, ok…

[moonslav59]

38 minutes ago, harmony said:

Like targeting Eugenio Suarez to play first base.

Someone finally moved Devers to 1B!

LOL

[Duran Is The Man]

42 minutes ago, harmony said:

It was just odd that one sentence referred to Emerson Hancock by his first name and to Pete Alonso by his last name.

i'm kinda odd so no surprise there. i'd even take Logan Evans in lieu of Hancock for Casas. Assuming we sign Alonso.

Colt Emerson's #1 prospect ranking is well-deserved. i was a bit skeptical before he arrived at Arkansas, but no longer.

[Hugh2]

15 hours ago, drewski6 said:

Your if is not in the realm of possibility, and the guy he was in 2004 was a 0.6 WAR

Hes now 2 years older than he was when he hurt himself swinging a bat.  ANd 1 year older than he was when he hurt himself jogging. Well, to be fair , he was running when he hurt himself the second time but it was the first time ive ever seen him do it, and it was ugly and im not surprised he got hurt

dudes toast.  masa is overpaid, but casas is toast.

 

2 years older? you act like he's a 40 year old, he's literally 25 years old.  So he got hurt running 100%, he's a big lumbering man and that's not his game.  Someone should tell him that. 

I meant his 2023 season, after a slow first month he put up a .916 OPS the rest of the way from May 1st on, .953 from June 1st on. 

He's a slow starter, and if he can't ever stay healthy he'll never reach his potential. But if he can get healthy he has a chance of being a really good hitter.  If Casas stays healthy next year, and perhaps that's a big if (and that's fair) he's going to be one of the best hitters on the team if not the best. 

You don't just throw that guy away when you have him under team control.  

[Malcolm White]

On 10/27/2025 at 7:38 PM, moonslav59 said:

I think almost all of us want to keep him, offer him arb and give him a shot. His trade value is so low vs his upside potential, and he may have the most proven HR power of any Sox player on the 40.

What do we need most, this winter?

Power. He has it.

OBP....he has it.

 

[Hugh2]

12 hours ago, harmony said:

It was just odd that one sentence referred to Emerson Hancock by his first name and to Pete Alonso by his last name.

You could go the otherway around and say Hancock Pete. 

[Hugh2]

13 hours ago, notin said:

With Casas, the question is timeline.  Other than him saying he wants to be ready for opening day, there has been nothing.

It’s nice to see I’m not alone on Yoshida Island…

This is why I want the Sox to go out and get a 1B.  I haven't completely given up on Casas yet, but I think you kinda have to a little bit when it comes to roster construction.  

If he's our first baseman in a few years from now......great.  But I think he has to come back healthy and prove and he can stay healthy adding something offensively.  I'm perfectly fine with a healthy Yoshida being DH too and as people say, these things tend to work themselves out.  For better or worse. 

[Malcolm White]

17 hours ago, drewski6 said:

I can see Yoshida hitting .280, 19 HR and playing adequate 1b.  I feel comfy in my assessment that yoshida has the better chance to be a ballplayer going forward.

I think we start hearing rumblings of casas getting "close" in like late may, but then like july arrives and everyone is like where is this guy, and maybe similar to yoshida (last year) he comes back in a dh capacity half way through the season, but i think he hurts himself very soon thereafter 

I like Yoshida. With a big-bat masher or two in the lineup, his batted-ball skills would help the offense.  But his is not a big bat. Casas's is.

Masa's hit 29 HR in 1200 PA's since joining the Red Sox.  Casas has hit 45 in 950 PAs, or one every 21 PA, a better rate than Devers or anyone else on the roster.

Get Suarez to play third, keep Casas healthy, hit more HR.

[drewski6]

14 hours ago, notin said:

With Casas, the question is timeline.  Other than him saying he wants to be ready for opening day, there has been nothing.

It’s nice to see I’m not alone on Yoshida Island…

Its A question, not the question. Its not like if they put out a timeline that was reasonably thought-out and not just thrown out there to placate, then all of our concerns on casas would just go away.

Theres still the fact that hes one of the slowest , most unathletic players, and that doesnt get better with age - and he keeps hurting himself in ways that you would expect from an uncoordinated clumsy big bodied dude.

Even if healthy, I have questions about if we even want him drawing walks, which are a major part of his game, and his hit tool and hes horrible defensively.

He could yet still re-enter the equation at some point, I wouldnt like give him away - but he needs to be close to an afterthought until he forces us to reconsider.

Yoshida, I dont think is starting from so far behind with as much uphill to climb.  I see no reason why Yoshida cant become a serviceable first baseman, his left handedness being an advantage.  I thought his biggest defensive shortcomings were speed and arm, both of which are secondary at 1b.

The problem with Yoshida at DH is that it could be Schwarber.  So lets fast forward and say we are playing against the yankees again next year in a playoff matchup.  ANd Yoshida is coming up to bat 3rd or 4th. You mean to tell me you wouldnt much rather have Schwarber in that spot?

So Yoshidas real issue is the opportunity cost. But I find it unlikely they get both Schwarber and Alonso, and I dont think they should go after Alonso because he plays 1b. Thats just overlooking that Schwarber is a far superior hitter and we need that caliber bat.

I can see Yoshida contributing to this team next year, but I find it far more likely if he learns first-base.

[drewski6]

12 hours ago, notin said:

The diminutive Yoshida at 1b? He’s like the only major leaguer that looks up to see Andrew Vaughn!

So yeah, ok…

Yes.  Or Schwarber, I dont really care.  But I think Schwarber is the guy we need despite he's lefty and a "DH" but Im fine with Schwarber at 1b.

[drewski6]

1 hour ago, Hugh2 said:

2 years older? you act like he's a 40 year old, he's literally 25 years old.  So he got hurt running 100%, he's a big lumbering man and that's not his game.  Someone should tell him that. 

I meant his 2023 season, after a slow first month he put up a .916 OPS the rest of the way from May 1st on, .953 from June 1st on. 

He's a slow starter, and if he can't ever stay healthy he'll never reach his potential. But if he can get healthy he has a chance of being a really good hitter.  If Casas stays healthy next year, and perhaps that's a big if (and that's fair) he's going to be one of the best hitters on the team if not the best. 

You don't just throw that guy away when you have him under team control.  

Im not advocating for throwing him away, Im telling you why Im not saving a seat for him at the table and hes going to have to earn it back by leapfrogging dudes, and I am saying Im not confident that he will leapfrog the dudes he needs to leapfrog, even if he does stay healthy.

Im simply not interested in his 93rd percentile walk rate, terrible defensive profile, one of the very bottom in the league in terms of athleticism and speed.  He has a long swing, and isnt elite at squaring the ball up. He does have good bat speed and a great eye when healthy, so sure - those are positives. 

But the question that was posed to me was which one do I think is a better ballplayer, and I think its probably Yoshida.

[Hugh2]

1 hour ago, drewski6 said:

Im not advocating for throwing him away, Im telling you why Im not saving a seat for him at the table and hes going to have to earn it back by leapfrogging dudes, and I am saying Im not confident that he will leapfrog the dudes he needs to leapfrog, even if he does stay healthy.

Im simply not interested in his 93rd percentile walk rate, terrible defensive profile, one of the very bottom in the league in terms of athleticism and speed.  He has a long swing, and isnt elite at squaring the ball up. He does have good bat speed and a great eye when healthy, so sure - those are positives. 

But the question that was posed to me was which one do I think is a better ballplayer, and I think its probably Yoshida.

Oh absolutely, that's pretty much where I'm at and why I would get excited if we signed someone like Pete Alonso.  If he earns his way back, it will be thru the DH position, and if Yoshida is hitting then maybe his contract becomes movable, or not? regardless it would be a better problem to have than a roster filled with DH/1B types who aren't hitting.