The Boston Red Sox began the weekend is disarray. A loss to the Kansas City Royals on Friday night dropped the team back down to .500 at 20-20, and the noise surrounding Rafael Devers' apparent refusal to move to first base after Triston Casas' injury had grown so loud that chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and even owner John Henry felt compelled to fly out to Kauffman Stadium for a conversation with their disgruntled DH.
By the end of the weekend, though, the mood was far different. Boston bounced back with two wins on Saturday and Sunday, and Devers was the biggest reason why, pounding out six hits and either driving in or scoring seven of the team's 13 runs — all while serving as the team's designated hitter. It was a not-so-subtle reminder of exactly who the engine of this Red Sox team really is, and why it would serve Boston's braintrust to try and put this most recent controversy behind them as quickly as possible.
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Rafael Devers reminds Red Sox he has all the leverage with monster weekend
It seems like Devers' 2025 season has been bogged down by drama from the moment the team headed south for spring training. But through it all, the three-time All-Star has continued to mash: After a brutal opening week, he's slashed .319/.429/.558 with seven homers since the calendar turned to April, and he's done so without missing a single game.
Alex Bregman has been sensational so far in his Boston debut, but make no mistake: Devers is this team's offensive engine, and if they want to win big this year, they're going to need him hitting like one of the best bats in baseball. The Red Sox simply cannot afford for him to be anything other than his best self, and while it's fair to hold his unwillingness to step up amid injury against him, Boston would be better off figuring out another solution at first base and letting Devers do his thing.
For starters, fans have been a little too willing to overlook exactly what a midseason position switch would entail. Yes, it's the easiest defensive position on the diamond, but it's still one that Devers has never played in his Major League career. Asking him to learn those nuances of footwork and timing in the middle of May felt like it was asking for trouble, not just in the field but also with what it could do to Devers' confidence at the plate if he struggled.
It's easy to slide Devers across the infield, slot Masataka Yoshida or Roman Anthony into the DH spot and dream of what could be. But those are all hypotheticals; in the real world, Devers' bat is arguably the single most important driver of Boston's success this season. That means sometimes swallowing your tongue in the name of keeping him happy, whether fans like it or not.