Why Masataka Yoshida might be the SF Giants next starting left fielder

An outfielder who walks a lot, doesn't strike out, and has been one of the best hitters in the NPB sure seems like a top SF Giants target.

The SF Giants next starting left fielder might be on the verge of hitting free agency. The Orix Buffaloes will be posting outfielder Masataka Yoshida, according to a report by Yahoo Japan. Per the report, the Yankees, Blue Jays, and Mariners are interested. With that said, a quick look at Yoshida's statistics makes it easy to envision the Giants getting involved.

Could the SF Giants target Masataka Yoshida this offseason? / Yukihito Taguchi-USA TODAY Sports

Yoshida has spent his entire professional career with the Orix Buffaloes, reaching the highest level of Nippon Professional Baseball as a 22-year-old back in 2016. Set to turn 30 next July, Yoshida is now looking to head stateside to test his talents against MLB competition.

Over his seven-year career, Yoshida has recorded a .326/.419/.538 triple-slash with 164 doubles and 135 home runs. In 2022, he hit .335/.447/.561 with 21 home runs in the regular season before helping Orix win its first Japan Series championship in the 21st century. In a particular highlight, Yoshida hit a pair of homers in Game 5, including a walk-off blast.

Beyond the impressive surface-level offensive numbers, there's another reason to expect the Giants to be interested in Yoshida. He has always walked at an excellent rate without striking out much.

“I’ve spent an unhealthy amount of time just staring at his 27 walk to 12 strikeout ratio last year," Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said about infielder Tommy La Stella when he signed a three-year deal with the Giants. "That probably says a lot more about me than it does about him.”

Farhan Zaidi on #SFGiants signee Tommy La Stella:

“I’ve spent an unhealthy amount of time just staring at his 27 walk to 12 strikeout ratio last year. That probably says a lot more about me than it does about him.”

— Kerry Crowley (@KO_Crowley) February 4, 2021

While it was not in MLB, Yoshida has 210 walks (14.4% of his plate appearances) and 96 strikeouts (6.6%) over the past three seasons in the NPB. It's hard to imagine Zaidi is not at least intrigued with that strikeout-to-walk ratio. Yoshida's .342/.443/.545 triple-slash over the past three seasons is nothing to scoff at either.

Yoshida is limited to left field defensively with below-average speed and an unexceptional arm, which does make his fit in San Francisco more difficult. Still, even though the Giants have re-signed left-handed hitting outfielder Joc Pederson, Yoshida becoming the everyday left fielder could enable manager Gabe Kapler to make Pederson a permanent designated hitter.

There are not any great recent comps for Yoshida who have made the transition from the NPB to MLB. Yoshi Tsutsugo, Shohei Ohtani, and Seiya Suzuki were all power hitters in Japan and even more contact-oriented players who have made the transition like Shogo Akiyama struck out at a significantly higher rate in the NPB than Yoshida.

The closest comp might actually be former Giants outfielder Nori Aoki, who also came stateside the year he turned 30. However, even Aoki was not as productive offensively in Japan as Yoshida. Granted, Aoki was also faster with a bit more defensive versatility. Overall, Aoki hit .285/.350/.387 over his six-year MLB career with nearly as many walks (234) as strikeouts (258). Those numbers seem like a conservative projection for Yoshida.

Aoki signed a two-year, $5 million contract with the Brewers that included a club option for a third season when he left Japan back in 2014. It seems reasonable that Yoshida will ink a deal of a similar length with a significantly higher average annual value, perhaps in the $7 million per year range.

The SF Giants need to add a middle-of-the-order bat this offseason. However, if they miss out on Aaron Judge, that will probably have to come from signing one of the several elite free-agent shortstops. If that's the path they take, it's easy to envision Farhan Zaidi falling in love with Masataka Yoshida's profile and signing him to become the team's starting left fielder.