After first baseman Triston Casas went down with a season-ending knee injury earlier this week, fans questioned who would fill his shoes at first.
In the interim, the Red Sox are platooning utility player Romy Gonzalez and Triple-A call-up Abraham Torro.
The most natural answer was to have Rafael Devers jump into the role.
However, Devers himself seems to disagree. And he’s been very public about it.
For context, Devers lost his job as the starting third baseman when the team signed Alex Bregman. Questions surfaced over whether or not the team handled it properly, if Devers was being difficult, etc.
Since then, Devers has become the designated hitter, albeit kicking and screaming.
When asked after the Red Sox’s 5-0 win over the Rangers yesterday if he would move to first, he said, “I don’t think for me personally it’s the best decision after they asked me to play a different position, and I only have two months of playing this position. To all of a sudden have me try to play another position … from my end, it doesn’t seem like a good decision.”
He goes on to say, “In spring training, they talked to me and basically told me to put away my glove — that I wasn’t going to play any other position but DH. So right now, I just feel like it’s not an appropriate decision by them to ask me to play another position.”
Think that’s bad? Here’s what he said about Craig Breslow, who was apparently the person who asked Devers to move, “I’m not certain what he has with me,” he said. “He played ball. I would like to think that he knows that a change to a position like that isn’t easy.”
He went on to also say that the front office should “do their job” and find a first baseman on the market.
I have truly never seen anything like this. I’m sure players talk about their front offices like this behind closed doors all the time, but on the record like this is unprecedented.
I am at my wits’ end with Devers. He bitched and moaned about moving to DH all spring, and now that the team is DEPENDING ON HIM after a catastrophic injury, he is once again stomping his feet.
Does Devers want to win or not? Does he care more about himself and his stats, or does he care more about winning? The ladder seems unlikely.
What really blows my mind is the people defending Devers. Yes, this guy has been inconvenienced at work. But guess what? HE GETS PAID 30 MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR.
Honestly, I can’t even believe they asked. They should have said, “Get your glove, Raffy. The team needs you at first.”
This is also further blockage for Roman Anthony or Marcelo Mayer to get called up to the big leagues, as the DH role would now be open if Devers moved to first.
What a great example he is setting. The highest-paid guy in the organization is refusing to do what the team needs from him to win.
All I can say is that they paid the wrong guy. It’s no coincidence that Mookie Betts has played right, shortstop, and second base for the Dodgers and has won two championships with them.
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