'Emotional' Rafael Devers was wronged by Red Sox officials about 1B move, claims MLB analyst

Boston Red Sox star Rafael Devers - batting .255 with six home runs and 25 RBIs - is having a strong season. However, off the field, he faces drama over clashes with Red Sox officials regarding a potential position change.

Having reluctantly settled into his role as a DH to vacate third base for the incoming Gold Glover, Alex Bregman, Devers has been reportedly asked to deputize at first base, with regular first baseman Triston Casas facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Rafael Devers was quite perplexed at the proposition, outright refusing the change. Weighing in on the matter, insider Joel Sherman claimed the Red Sox officials dropped the ball, and all these discussions should have happened well in advance to avoid the situation that is now transpiring.

"I think he rethought his position on DH, which he originally didn't want to do. I think he ultimately will probably rethink his position on this (moving to first base), but he's emotional right now," Joel Sherman said, via 'MLB Now' on Friday. "No player ever wants to embarrass himself. I think the biggest blame here is with the adults in the room (Red Sox executives)."

"The Red Sox were clearly going to acquire a third baseman this offseason. This should have been worked out in every way with him (Devers) before he ever steps foot in Fort Myers for Spring Training," Sherman added.

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Former big leaguer says Rafael Devers risks 'losing the clubhouse' if ongoing spat drags on

Former big leaguer Ron Darling also made his points about the Rafael Devers — Boston Red Sox situation, claiming Devers may lose face in the clubhouse if no resolution is found quickly.

"I think this was honesty [from Rafael Devers]. This is a player that has felt disrespected since spring training, or even before that. At some point, you lose the clubhouse as a player, if you don't agree to make the team better," Ron Darling said.

Rafael Devers in action for the Boston Red Sox. (Credits: Getty)

Further, Darling went on to say how such moves happen pretty often, and even the best of the best need to put the team first sometimes, just like Aaron Judge did in the recent past.

"This [kind of change] happens all the time, including the greatest right-handed bat that we have right now (Aaron Judge, who moved to center field to allow Soto to play right field)." Darling added

With the Red Sox aiming to make the playoffs this season, fans will hope the ongoing disagreement does not negatively impact results.

About the author

Raghav Mehta is a baseball journalist at Sportskeeda awaiting results for a Bachelor's in Journalism from Delhi University. He enjoys highlighting the key battles between players at different stages of the game and analyzing the decisive moments upon which they hinge.

One of Raghav's favorite moments, which underscores this, was the Shohei Ohtani vs. Mike Trout clash in the 2023 WBC, where two of baseball's best players faced off against each other in the 9th inning. With the score 3-2 to Japan, Shohei eventually got the strikeout, which was absolute cinema.

Raghav is a Baltimore Orioles fan and is enjoying watching such an exciting young team compete at the top in a very competitive division.

Raghav has loved watching sports for as long as he can remember and realized he was pretty decent at writing his thoughts down at around the age of 14. Combining the two meant he had something he would enjoy doing every day, and he had identified that well before going to college.

Aside from work, Raghav enjoys playing sports, working out and watching movies.

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Edited by William Paul