Days after Red Sox lost Triston Casas to injury, Rafael Devers opens up why he won't play first base

Boston Red Sox DH Rafael Devers has put his foot down on switching to a potential first base position. After Triston Casas got sidelined with a ruptured left patellar tendon, the team asked Devers to switch to 1B, and his immediate answer was “no”.

According to Devers, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow came to him and asked him to switch his position from designated hitter to first base. It’s only been months since his last position change from third base to DH after the team acquired Alex Bregman during spring training.

While tensions were already high in the clubhouse due to his reluctance to change from third base, he eventually settled down as a designated hitter. Now, with another proposal for a position change after Triston Casas’ injury, Devers has drawn the line.

"I don't think, for me personally, it's the best decision after they asked me to play a different position. And I only had two months playing this position to all of a sudden have me try to play another position. So, from my end, it doesn't seem like a good decision,” Rafael Devers said on Thursday.

The discussion between Breslow and Rafael Devers took place after the Red Sox won 5-0 against the Texas Rangers on Thursday. Devers said that the team should look for other players from the market rather than expect him “to play every single position out there.”

He believes the team is going against their word when they said they won’t make further changes after the spring training chaos. Devers thinks that as a former player, Breslow knows how hard it is to change and adjust to new positions, and this time he’s not going to do so.

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Alex Cora opened door for Rafael Devers' position change after Triston Casas' injury

Triston Casas and Rafael Devers [Source: Imagn]

Following Triston Casas’ injury in the game against the Minnesota Twins, the team announced that he’ll undergo surgery and is not expected to play again this season. This injury news hit hard as he was sidelined for 63 games with torn cartilage in his left ribcage last season.

Manager Alex Cora initially said Devers wouldn’t need to change again, but earlier this week, he said a change could happen.

So I’m not saying we’ll never have that conversation, but I think for now, where we’re at, I like Raffy as a DH. I like him as I make my DH. You take away the first weekend of the season, he’s been one of the best hitters in the big leagues, and he’s doing an outstanding job,” Cora said on "WEEI Afternoons" Wednesday.

While Cora added that a potential switch would be a "long process," Devers' initial reaction suggests that he will need some convincing to make another position change.