Red Sox insider takes playful dig at Rafael Devers in light of altercation during Giants vs. Rockies game

Rafael Devers' admiration for his two-run homer during the Giants' game against the Rockies on Tuesday angered Kyle Freeland, sparking a bench-clearing brawl. Freeland yelled at Devers as he was jogging to first base. Devers took offense and yelled back at him, and both benches and bullpens cleared.

Red Sox insider Rob Bradford used the incident lightheartedly while answering whether Boston misses Dever's presence.

"No." Bradford said on Thursday (6:44), via WEEI-FM's "Jones & Keefe" show. "Rafael Devers, you know, he, I know that he had the terrible streak, which is well documented on the show. You guys do an extra expert job of monitoring the ebbs and the flows.

"And, by the way, Rafael Devers did teach me one thing," he added, "That you don't have to go all the way around the bases after hitting a home run. You can just veer off and fight somebody."

According to MLB rules, players must round the bases after hitting a home run. However, in this case, Devers didn't have to.

Even though the incident began with a verbal altercation, Giants third baseman Matt Chapman and shortstop Willy Adames soon joined. Chapman rushed over and shoved the Rockies pitcher, followed by Adames, who tried to push Freeland but missed due to interventions.

Freeland, Chapman and Adames were ejected from the game. MLB fined all four players, including Devers, and issued a one-game suspension to Chapman, who appealed and won.

Red Sox insider admits he mocked CBO justifying Rafael Devers trade

After Boston traded Rafael Devers to the Giants on June 15, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow boldly claimed they would win more games. Breslow garnered criticism, but time proved him right. While New York's postseason hopes are dim, Boston is in contention to win the AL East division.

Red Sox insider Rob Bradford admitted the mistake of criticizing Breslow.

"What Craig Brelow said, which we all mocked, which was, 'Hey, you're going to win more games doing it this way than the other way, the way that we were doing,'" Bradford said on Thursday (7:23), via WEEI-FM's "Jones & Keefe" show.

"And they have. Like, can we quantify that exactly? I don't know. But all I know is that since then, go through all the offensive numbers, go through the record and all of it, they've been better."

Bradford also highlighted how Devers' absence resulted in the emergence of new stars for the team.

"I know that people don't want to hear this," Bradford said. "Roman Anthony probably doesn't do what he's doing because, like, you're picking your spots when he's playing. You're picking your spots when other guys are playing. One of the things it did was free up and give these guys a chance, who took advantage of the chance."

Roman Anthony is on the injured list due to a left oblique strain he suffered against the Guardians on Tuesday. Typical recovery for this type of injury is four to six weeks.

Bradford admitted that a bat like Devers would've been helpful, but added that it's unrealistic to expect him to return soon.