During his introductory news conference with the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday, Rafael Devers declared something in Spanish that the Boston Red Sox wished they could have heard from one of the game’s elite hitters.
“They’re the men in charge,” Devers’ translator said two days after being acquired from the Red Sox. “I am here to play wherever they want me to play.”
According to Giants manager Bob Melvin, this means the 28-year-old Devers will soon start taking grounders so he can split time between designated hitter and first base. The ninth-year standout has yet to play first base in the big leagues.
“We talked a little bit today,” Melvin said. “And like he said, he goes, ‘I’ll play wherever you want me to play. I’ll hit wherever you want me to hit.’
“We’re going to work him in and get him some ground balls at first and make sure he’s comfortable before we put him over there. And that’s pretty much the way we look at it right now: a little bit of DH and a little bit of first.”
For tonight – Devers’ Giants debut versus the Cleveland Guardians — he will bat third and serve as the designated hitter.
That’s the only position Devers played for the Red Sox this year, which was a bone of contention for the left-handed slugger as well as the team. Devers didn’t appreciate being moved from third base to DH when Alex Bregman signed a free-agent contract during spring training – and the Red Sox didn’t appreciate Devers’ unwillingness to give first base a try after Triston Casas suffered a season-ending knee injury on May 2.
One thing led to another until Sunday – when the Red Sox and Giants announced their trade that reverberated across MLB. Devers and his 10-year, $313.5-million contract went to San Francisco for left-handed starter Kyle Harrison, right-handed reliever Jordan Hicks and two prospects: outfielder James Tibbs and pitcher Jose Bello.
“It’s incredibly impactful to have a guy like him in the lineup,” Melvin said. “The buzz around our clubhouse on Sunday and leaving (Los Angeles on) Sunday and certainly on the off day and today has certainly been pretty amazing.”
Devers produced a .279/.349/.510 slash line during eight-plus seasons in Boston that featured 215 homers and 696 RBIs over 1,053 games. The Giants anticipate Devers serving as the franchise’s best left-handed power source since Barry Bonds retired in 2007 – as no San Francisco lefty has swatted 30 home runs in a season since Bonds’ 45 in 2004.
Coincidentally, Bonds sat in the front row for Devers’ news conference and Devers smiled enthusiastically in his direction whenever Bonds was referenced.
“I think just looking at him, my game has already improved a lot,” Devers said.
–Field Level Media
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