Since Rafael Devers seemingly made waves at Boston Red Sox spring training with his assertion that he wouldn't move to DH and was the team's third baseman after the addition of Alex Bregman, just about everyone involved with the organization has tried their best to downplay it. Bregman has, manager Alex Cora has, other teammates have, and even Devers has stepped in to try and provide more context about how he feels.
The vibes have undeniably improved since that point but, at the same time, the question still remains: Who will be the Red Sox everyday third baseman? By proxy, that also opens up the question of second base as well. If Devers is entrenched at third, then Bregman is at second. If Devers is at DH, however, that opens up much more flexibility for top prospects Kristian Campbell or Marcelo Mayer to be on the Opening Day roster, or even for David Hamilton to find his way in.
Because of the roster and lineup versatility that Devers moving to DH would offer Boston, I've long been a proponent of that — especially given that he's statistically been one of the worst defensive third basemen in MLB for the past few years. The key is simply ensuring that Devers would make that move for the best interest of the Red Sox and be happy there.
Red Sox fans should be hoping that the one person who could make the best sell for that plan is delivering that message.
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David Ortiz is the perfect Red Sox legend to get through to Rafael Devers
On Friday ahead of a spring training tilt against the Philadelphia Phillies, a video emerged of Devers and Boston legend David Ortiz deep in conversation. We obviously don't know how long that went on or what exactly was said, only that these two do have a strong history and that Ortiz knows exactly what Devers is dealing with currently.
Would love to hear this conversation. Hall of Fame DH David Ortiz chatting with Rafael Devers on the way out to infield practice today. pic.twitter.com/pRrOWNf0zl
— Tom Caron (@TomCaron) February 28, 2025
Once upon a time, Ortiz also had to give up playing the field to move to DH. That, obviously, worked out quite well for the Hall of Famer and the Red Sox with how he dominated at the plate for years to come after that switch.
That context, however, made it all the more surprising when, earlier this offseason, he seemed to push back on the idea of moving Devers from third base for Bregman. What made it more surprising was that he compared Devers to himself, a player who famously starred as a DH in Boston.
We can only hope this latest conversation is in line with the tone around the team of late, though. Cora, Bregman and several others have talked about simply doing what's best for the Red Sox to win. To me, that's Devers playing DH and being a fill-in at third base from time to time. He's paid for his bat, not his glove, and that could also help to get the best lineup out there for Boston. It seems to make too much sense not to do that, but that message becomes murky if Ortiz is in his ear with something counter to it.
Ultimately, I believe this all works out for the Red Sox with no real drama resulting from all of this. Devers may still play third base but I think that's the less likely option based on several comments from Cora throughout the spring. Let's just pray that Ortiz isn't doing anything that wouldn't make that decision as seamless as it should be in order to get the Red Sox back to playoff contention.