The Boston Red Sox are preparing to take on the Kansas City Royals on Friday, but they might have some in-house business to address first.
After a season-ending injury to Triston Casas, the team signaled that it might ask franchise slugger Rafael Devers to take over his position at first base. The Red Sox had already asked Devers to give up his long-held role at third base to accommodate new teammate Alex Bregman and, after voicing his displeasure with that move, Devers has been adjusting to a designated hitter role.
As the team mulled its options to replace Casas, Devers avoided the media. But on Thursday, following a win against the Texas Rangers, he made his feelings about the situation known.
“I know I’m a ballplayer but at the same time they can’t expect me to play every single position out there,” Devers said, per Christopher Smith of MassLive. “In spring training, they talked to me and basically told me to put away my glove — that I wasn’t going to play another 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.”
Devers also singled out chief baseball officer Craig Breslow for criticism and said that he feels the front office should bring in an external addition instead.
Since that session with the media, there has been no shortage of opinions about where to place the blame for this apparent riff between the star player and team officials. And now Smith has added that Devers’ teammates are displeased.
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“A couple players, veteran players … were not happy with the situation, with his inflexibility and also the way that he brought it out publicly” Smith said on “Foul Territory.” “There were players that weren’t happy about it.”
Smith said that another Red Sox reporter caught one of Devers’ teammates as he offered three choice words to Devers in the midst of the media session: “Just stop talking.”
“Somebody, while Rafael Devers was continuing to answer questions, somebody just said, ‘just stop talking,’” Smith described. “I didn’t hear that player directly, that’s what I was told.”
While Devers’ reaction was sure to upset some Red Sox players and team personnel, as well as some fans, others might be a little more understanding of his stance. In any case, it seems like a situation that will have to be addressed internally sooner rather than later.
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