.jpg)
9 hours ago
1
•
The Boston Red Sox got themselves back to a winning record on Thursday, but the victory was short lived.
Following a win against the Texas Rangers, franchise slugger Rafael Devers met with the media for the first time in days as speculation has grown about his filling in for the injured Triston Casas at first base. And Devers voiced some pretty clear displeasure at the idea of moving.
“To all of a sudden have me try to play another position … from my end, it doesn’t seem like a good decision,” Devers said, per Christopher Smith of MassLive. “And now I think they should do their job essentially and hit the market and look for another player (to play first base).”
The team heard some similar concerns from Devers as it asked him to move into a designated hitter role with Alex Bregman taking over third base in spring training. Ultimately, Devers took on the new role and has seemed to adjust well.
But this proposed shift has evidently caused a larger rift between the star player and the front office, which is led by chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. Devers singled Breslow out in several comments, per Smith.
Despite the rift, though, MLB Network’s Harold Reynolds expects Devers to ultimately conform to the team’s request after Breslow and the team conduct a “sit down conversation.”
“He conformed (to DH),” Reynolds noted. “I think it’s a conversation. He’s going to do it again. He will play first base. But they better sit down and rectify it… I think he will.”
Reynolds added that Devers’ hesitancy to embrace the ask might come from an understanding of how difficult it would be to adjust to the new position defensively, particularly as Devers was often criticized for his defense at third base.
“You know how much pride you take in your defense when everyone’s saying you can’t defend?” Reynolds asked. “He knows what it’s going to take to be respectable at first base.”
It might seem impossible now, but there’s still a chance the two sides come to an understanding and Devers embraces a new defensive role for the Red Sox.
More MLB: Blue Jays John Schneider 'in serious danger' after Pirates fire Derek Shelton
Peter Chawaga is a veteran journalist covering Major League Baseball for The Sporting News. His MLB reporting has included feature interviews with commissioner Rob Manfred and Hall of Fame slugger David Ortiz, salary analysis, player rankings and more. He has covered baseball for Forbes, Yardbarker, Pitcher List, Athlon and other outlets.
With over ten years of newsroom experience, he has previously covered finance, technology, arts, and culture for newspapers, magazines, and websites nationwide. He graduated from Wake Forest University with a degree in English and journalism.
English (US)