Rafael Devers’ last at bat with the Boston Red Sox was a home run.
Hitting on Sunday in Fenway Park, Devers embraced the Green Monster one final time when he took a left-on-left offering from Max Fried deep and beyond the gigantic wall in left-center.
No one, seriously no one, thought that would be his last at bat with the Red Sox.
But only a couple hours after that game ended, a Boston sweep of the Yankees, and Devers had been traded to the San Francisco Giants.
Boston reportedly got a couple of MLB pitchers in return in Jordan Hicks and Kyle Harrison, along with a potential prospect haul that news was slower getting out on.
On paper, it’s one of the most stunning moments in the history of the Boston franchise.
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Why did the Red Sox trade Rafael Devers?
Controversy has been brewing with Rafael Devers since the offseason.
The Red Sox brought in Alex Bregman to play third base, which was Devers’ spot. It was logical to move Devers off the position after he led MLB in errors over his tenure at the spot while Bregman had just won the Gold Glove in 2024 in Houston.
But Devers wasn’t happy, and he made that clear. He even reportedly asked for a trade.
Devers eventually backed off for a time, and he settled into his DH role. After an 0-for-21 start to the season, he started hitting like his usual self that had earned a $313 million contract.
But the positional drama continued.
First, Triston Casas suffered a season-ending injury, meaning Boston needed a new first baseman. Devers expressed a disinterest in taking that spot.
Then, Bregman got hurt, and Boston needed a temporary third base fill-in. Again, no interest for Devers.
In the end, it appears the Red Sox got tired of the drama, and they sent Devers away rather than taking more time to try and solve it.
Devers was tracking to be a Boston legend, and instead he’ll be a sad tale.
He came up as a baby-faced youngster and quickly showed he was one of the best hitters in baseball.
Red Sox fans will only be able to watch from afar to see if Devers continues on a Hall of Fame hitting trajectory on the other coast.
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