Lefties Galore: Red Sox Face Lineup Headache With Jarren Duran, Triston Casas and Masataka Yoshida

Pitchers and catchers report next week, and there are still multiple unanswered questions for the Boston Red Sox to answer. There is an overwhelming amount of depth in the outfield and on the bench. As it stands today, the Red Sox have four legitimate outfield options in Roman Anthony, Ceddanne Rafaela, Jarren Duran, and Wilyer Abreu. Ideally, all four of these guys see the field with regularity, as each of them provides strength from either their bat, glove, or both.

Those four alone will require a unique rotation of sticking someone at DH while the others fill in in the outfield. Roster Resource currently has Duran at DH versus both righties and lefties, while Anthony fills in at LF, Rafaela at CF, and Abreu in RF. This situation in a vacuum is great. It allows each guy to get rest when they need it, and all four of them play at an above-average level of defense, with Rafaela and Abreu being Gold Glove talents. To stick with the classic cliche, "You can never have too much depth."

Well, what if you can?

As it stands today, the Red Sox will be paying Masataka Yoshida $18.6 million to sit on the bench and fill in for an injury or a rest day. Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic said:

"The Red Sox may still try to trade him this spring. If that doesn't happen, his outfield reps will be limited, and his chances as a designated hitter may be, as well, with Duran and Anthony seeing more time in that spot."

Yoshida is a very useful MLB hitter; his problem is that he is not as useful as the four other options. If he were a right-handed hitter, there would be a clear and obvious place for him to slot in against lefties. Unfortunately for him, Rafaela is the only right-handed hitter among the quintet, and his defense is irreplaceable.

A clear opening for Yoshida would be a time when Rafaela goes cold or gets hurt. That would move Duran to center and open up a DH spot. Against right-handers, Yoshida shines far brighter than Rafaela. He boasts a career wRC+ of 118, an OPS of .795, and an OBP of .345 against righties.

The way to find a spot in the daily lineup for Yoshida is playing the matchups. I'm not talking about what side the pitcher throws from, I'm talking about pitch-type matchups. Yoshida crushes fastballs, hitting .338 off of four-seamers and producing a run value of 4. On the other hand, he struggles mightily against curveballs and cutters. So, the key for him getting in may very well be finding right-handed pitchers who rely heavily on their four-seam fastball for success and avoiding pitchers with high cutter and/or curveball usage in order to maximize Yoshida's skill set.

Finally, that leaves Triston Casas, who is unlikely to break camp with the team due to his brutal knee injury that knocked him out for all of 2025. When the Red Sox acquired Willson Contreras, Casas' spot on the team became significantly foggier than before.

Who can blame the Red Sox? Beyond his fabled 2023 second half, Casas has not shown up in ways that allowed him to maintain his spot in the lineup. Before his injury, he hit incredibly poorly, posting a 56 wRC+ and a .182 AVG over his first 23 games. With a poor bat and subpar defense, Casas' value comes into question. His staple was elite discipline mixed with pop, and he showed that in his first two full seasons, putting up consecutive .800+ OPS seasons.

Then, his walk rate dropped from 12.3% to 9.8%, and his average exit velocity from 90.3 mph to 87.6 mph. That, on top of his injury-riddled career (he's spent 320 games on the IL) makes him an unreliable option day-to-day.

Oddly enough, though, he is not exactly your prototypical platoon bat. Casas has a higher OPS against lefties, along with a higher wOBA and wRC+ — albeit, this is a smaller sample size, with 165 PAs vs. lefties as opposed to 651 vs. righties. His reverse splits are surely something the Red Sox will consider when making the lineup once Casas returns.

What Should the Red Sox Do?

As much as I would love to fit all of these guys into the picture, with how the roster is constructed today, it is simply impossible. Rostering four legitimate outfield options already throws a wrench into the mix. Having a likely infield addition AND all three of the players mentioned being left-handed ensures there is an odd man out.

Duran cannot be one of them. He is too valuable off the field and on it, providing more in all facets of the game than either Yoshida or Casas can with his mix of speed and power. That leaves Casas or Yoshida fighting for the last spot, and the choice is clear. Triston Casas sticks around while Yoshida finds greener pastures elsewhere.

The ceiling case for Casas is higher than it is with Yoshida at this point in his career. Call me naive, but I'm still clinging to the Casas we saw earlier in his career. The mix of plate discipline along with 70-grade power exists, and it's a profile I am more than willing to chase. Especially with not having the pressure of playing every day, thanks to Contreras, this will allow the Red Sox to place him in positions to succeed.

Yoshida will have about a month to prove he belongs and make Craig Breslow's decision with the lineup even more difficult.