Masataka Yoshida Reveals Offseason Procedure, Potential Impact

If Masataka Yoshida looks more relaxed in his second Red Sox season, he might have an offseason procedure in part to thank.

Prior to Sunday’s spring training game against the Minnesota Twins in Fort Myers, Fla., Yoshida revealed he underwent surgery to correct temporomandibular joint disorder in his jaw, per MassLive. A recent report from Yahoo Japan revealed the outfielder used to deal with a trembling jaw that sometimes came out of place, which led to constant headaches.

Yoshida told reporters that the TMJ did not trouble him during every game last season, his first in Boston. However, he believes the corrective procedure could be beneficial to his on-field performance.

“Less stress, obviously, could be positive,” Yoshida told the media, per MassLive.

Yoshida had a largely impressive first go-around with the Red Sox, batting .289 over 140 games following seven seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball. And if the 30-year-old is more at ease this year, both physically and mentally, he could make a legitimate bid for his first Major League Baseball All-Star nod.