Alex Cora goes out of his way to kick more dirt on Rafael Devers' third-base dreams

While there's been plenty of excitement around the Boston Red Sox leading up to the 2025 season, there's also been a fair bit of drama, particularly around incumbent superstar Rafael Devers and newcomer Alex Bregman. It was obvious almost immediately that the team's best lineup involved Bregman at third, Devers at DH and top prospect Kristian Campbell at second ... but apparently no one had broached that subject with Devers himself, who did not take kindly to being forced off his position.

A weird, staredown-but-not-really ensued, with Devers kind of walking back his initial objection while Boston just carried on with its initial plans. It felt less like resolution and more like kicking the can down the road, especially with Devers unable to play the field anyway as he worked back from some offseason shoulder discomfort. Was Devers actually okay with this? And what was the Red Sox' long-term plan at the position, with Bregman on a year-to-year basis?

We may not have gotten the answers in spring training, but we definitely have them now, at least if manager Alex Cora is to be believed.

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Alex Cora slams the door shut on Rafael Devers as Red Sox third baseman

For the second straight game, Devers is serving as Boston's DH, sandwiched in the lineup between leadoff man Jarren Duran and Bregman in the three-hole.

And Cora wants to make very clear that this arrangement isn't going to change — not this year, and not even when Bregman or Campbell are out of the lineup. "He's the DH of the Boston Red Sox," Cora said of Devers before Friday's game against the Texas Rangers, a sentiment that may not have Devers' blessing but sure seems definitive enough.

Not even allowing Devers to play the field when Bregman sits, or when his shoulder finally gets to 100 percent, is the sort of move that feels bigger than just one season. Sure, Bregman might opt out next winter and head elsewhere, or do the same after 2026, meaning that Boston will have a hole at the hot corner once again. But how can the team realistically go back to Devers in that spot, after they've spent the past month or so making extremely clear that it's not where they want him to play?

Devers must be on board with this arrangement at least to some extent, considering that he's in the lineup every day and hasn't said anything else to reignite this controversy of late. But it's still a major development, an All-Star smack in his prime being moved off his position of choice and into a role that he's on record as not being much of a fan of. Presumbly the Sox know what they're doing, although this situation still feels awfully volatile.