Alex Cora Believes This Hitter Makes Red Sox Lineup ‘Elite’

The Boston Red Sox have swung the bats extremely well since the All-Star break, posting the best team OPS in the sport in that span.

If you ask Boston manager Alex Cora, one hitter has helped unlock the lineup to start the second half for the Red Sox. That's Masataka Yoshida.

"He's hitting the ball hard," Cora told reporters, per NESN's pregame coverage. "We're very happy with him. If he continues to do this, I was telling Ramon (Vazquez), we have a great offense. When he's going like this, we're elite."

Yoshida has been smashing the ball in recent weeks, hitting .333 since the All-Star break. He powered the lineup with a four-hit effort in Monday's win over the Royals to start a massive series in Kansas City.

On the year, Yoshida is hitting .277 with five home runs and a .745 OPS.