The San Francisco Giants pulled off the biggest trade in recent MLB history a few weeks ago, swapping Jordan Hicks, Kyle Harrison and spare parts for Boston Red Sox star Rafael Devers. That followed months of drama in Boston as Devers butted heads with Red Sox leadership over a position change. The Red Sox moved him from third base to DH to begin the season. When Boston asked him to move back to the field, tempers flared.
As soon as he arrived in San Francisco, Devers' tune changed. Suddenly he was happy to take reps at first base and spend time in the field as needed. Buster Posey spoke of Devers' positional malleability as a strength. That led to a mounting bitterness in the Red Sox fanbase, although the root cause of that bitterness remains up for debate.
Did Boston fail to communicate, or did Devers let his ego get in the way of the team's best interests? Probably a mix of both. Either way, his immediate willingness to get on the field and flash his leather with the Giants was equal parts funny and maddening, depending on your allegiances.
That said, in hindsight, it feels like one long troll job from the Giants and Devers. Matt Chapman's looming return drives home that point.
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Matt Chapman's return probably ices Rafael Devers out of the field in San Francisco
After roughly a month-long absence due to a hand injury, Gold Glove third baseman Matt Chapman will rejoin the Giants lineup on Saturday. It will be our first chance to see the totality of this San Francisco lineup with Chapman and Devers in the heart of it.
That said, Chapman will be the everyday third baseman moving forward. Devers has not taken a single rep at third since the trade and now that door is effectively closed. There's just no reason to put Devers at the hot corner with Chapman, MLB's most accomplished infield glove, still operating at the peak of his powers. The idea of moving Devers around the field and using him at third or first was probably a farce — or at least a premature expression of Posey's imagination.
"There's the possibility to play third some with (Matt) Chapman out, to get some in at first, and DH," Posey told reporters at the time of the trade (h/t Bleacher Report). "By all accounts... he's a winner. He wants to do what he can to help the team. Obviously there was some back and forth with him and the Red Sox and I don't have all the details of where things went sideways, but he's excited to be in San Francisco and help our team win."
Devers, again, has not logged a single rep at third base during Chapman's absence. While he has been dealing with a groin injury, it's clear the Giants never really planned on returning Devers to his natural position. With Chapman back, there's a good chance we don't see Devers at third base for a while, if ever.
Will the Giants ever use Rafael Devers in the field?
While third base is out of the question (for now), we cannot close the book on first base. In fact, he could take the field "as early as next week's homestand," per John Shea of The San Francisco Standard.
"I’m very close,” Devers told reporters. “I feel very comfortable every time I go out there, and I know the minute that I’m healthy, I’m going to be at first."
So he still gets a chance to show up the Red Sox, just not at the position that caused so much strife in Boston. It's unclear if Devers, a notoriously poor defender, will actually succeed at first base, but the Giants appear committed to exploring all avenues before banishing their $313 million superstar to the DH role permanently.