When the Boston Red Sox signed Alex Bregman this past offseason, Rafael Devers was not too pleased. He did not want to move from third base and become the team’s designated hitter. He wanted to stay at third.
It became an instant headline as Boston was dealing with some internal drama. However, that has seemed to disappear over this last week with Devers opening up to being the club’s DH.
Cora was a big reason for Devers’ change of heart. He opened up about the situation and how he was honest with his slugger about the possibility of Alex Bregman being the starter at 3B.
“I was very honest, you know? There was a lot of things going on. ‘This might happen.’ Then obviously the coversations about the decision and all that stuff,” said Cora.
Cora revealed that he was upfront with Devers from the start. He told him this was a possibility and while it took some time to be okay with it, Devers eventually understood the assignment.
“As you know, our job is to play, it’s not to agree with everything that goes, either,” Cora said. You know, there are certain things you are not going to agree with, but you know what? You’re going to show up the next day, we have to play,” he added.
As for now, the plans are for Devers to DH. He only has three games under his belt, getting a late jump on camp after dealing with shoulder injuries during the offseason.
Alex Cora was happy to see Rafael Devers staring down big-league pitching recently
Rafael Devers has gotten back into the box this spring with Opening Day just beyond the horizon. After Wednesday, he has now played in three games this spring for the Red Sox.
On Monday, the slugger blasted a double against the Baltimore Orioles and looked great. Cora was thrilled to see his slugger produce and believes he is in a good spot for the 2025 season.
“He’s putting himself in a great position. He hit a missile the other day off the wall and he’ll do the job,” the Red Sox manager added..
With the expected focus to just be on hitting, it will be interesting to see if Devers can up his offensive game. His career-high of 38 home runs during the 2021 season could be in jeopardy if he does not have to worry about his defense.
