Baseball: Yoshida vows to repay Buffaloes with Red Sox success

New Boston Red Sox outfielder Masataka Yoshida said Thursday he intends to further make good on the Orix Buffaloes' faith in him after he moves to Major League Baseball from Japan. "I want to display a game that is packed with gratitude, for people to see relentless effort," the diminutive 173-centimeter slugger told a press conference at his former Pacific League club's Osaka facility. "There were some hard times at first, but without giving up I worked hard to achieve my goals. Those results contributed to where the team is now," Yoshida said. "This team thought highly of me since I was a youngster, and had high expectations for me. And now I want to repay them for that."