The Red Sox announced a pair of injuries prior to this afternoon’s game against the Pirates. Designated hitter Masataka Yoshida heads to the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain, while righty reliever Justin Slaten goes on the 15-day IL (retroactive to August 13) with right elbow inflammation. In corresponding active roster moves, the Sox recalled catcher/first baseman Mickey Gasper and left-hander Raymond Burgos from Triple-A Worcester.
Yoshida suffered the hamstring strain in yesterday’s 4-0 Boston win over Pittsburgh. Facing Jared Jones in the top of the third, Yoshida lined an 0-1 pitch into the right field corner for a double. He tweaked the hamstring between first and second base and ended up diving uncomfortably into the base (video courtesy of MLB.com). Manager Chad Tracy immediately removed Yoshida from the game, replacing him with pinch-runner Anthony Siegler.
It’s unclear how long Yoshida will be out of action, though the Sox will provide more information as he undergoes tests. Minor hamstring strains typically require a couple weeks of downtime, whereas Grade 2 strains can take a month or longer. An absence of that length could put Yoshida’s return close to the end of the regular season, or the rest of his 2026 campaign could even be in jeopardy.
Yoshida is hitting .274/.347/.399 with five home runs over 297 plate appearances, with all but 30 of those PA coming against right-handed pitching. This offensive production translates to a respectable 107 wRC+, though Yoshida has only 0.3 fWAR due to a lack of defensive utility — he has made seven appearances in left field this season, with the rest of his action coming at DH.
Slaten will visit a doctor on Monday but downplayed the seriousness of his elbow issue, telling MassLive.com’s Sean McAdam and other reporters that he has pitched through similar types of elbow discomfort earlier this season. “But this time, it just got a little too much to the point where I was pitching and for two or three days afterward, it just wasn’t recovering well at all,” Slaten said. “So we made the decision that it’s better for me, for the team, for the guts in the bullpen, to let’s just get this heal and take its time and do what we need to do now so we can be ready to go down the stretch.”
Slaten’s 4.60 ERA is misleading, as the right-hander’s 2.76 SIERA is almost two full runs lower. The reliever has been harshly punished by a .360 BABIP and a 61.5% strand rate, as other secondary metrics like a 28.5% strikeout rate and 5.8% walk rate are both strong. Slaten missed about a month due to an oblique strain earlier this year, and he has logged 31 1/3 innings over 36 games out of the Boston bullpen.
Burgos and Gasper should help fill the voids created by these injuries, and some more position-player reinforcements may soon be on the way. Trevor Story is starting a minor league rehab assignment today with Worcester and Isiah Kiner-Falefa will play for Worcester on Wednesday, while Roman Anthony is also beginning a rehab assignment with Double-A Portland on Tuesday. All three players are on the 60-day IL, so they’ll likely be getting at least a week’s worth of games to shake off the rust from their lengthy absences.
Story underwent sports hernia surgery in May, and it has been almost exactly two months since Kiner-Falefa was sidelined by a stress fracture in his left forearm. Anthony hasn’t played since May 4 due to a partially torn tendon in his right ring finger, as it took an unexpectedly long time for Anthony to be able to swing without any discomfort.
