The talk of Boston Red Sox spring training has been Rafael Devers. The superstar let it be known that he has no desire to move on from being a full-time third baseman after the addition of Houston Astros infielder Alex Bregman. That means no filling in as a designated hitter at times. In fact, the plan is for Bregman to play second base.
Speaking of Devers, fans have been waiting to see when he might play. Devers is working his way back from injuring both of his shoulders at the end of the 2024 season, and thus far, hasn't made his spring training debut just yet.
When can Red Sox fans expect Devers to participate in an exhibition game?
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When will Rafael Devers make his spring training debut for Red Sox?
Christopher Smith, Red Sox reporter for MassLive, reports that the plan is for Devers to have batting practice on Thursday, Feb. 27. From there, the plan is for Devers to play a game next week, which is expected to be on Wednesday, March 5, against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Rafael Devers will hit in a live BP tomorrow for the first time. He'll play in a game next week (expected to be Wednesday).
— Christopher Smith (@SmittyOnMLB) February 25, 2025
As for what position Devers will play? Manager Alex Cora let it be known that he will play third base and designated hitter throughout the spring.
“[Devers will] play third [this spring],” Cora said, h/t MLB.com's Ian Browne. “I mean, the whole thing is we’re preparing Raffy to play third base. That’s part of the progression. He'll DH here and there. I don't know if on March 5, he'll play third, but we'll get him reps. I think people are making decisions already, and we haven't made decisions.
“But we'll keep talking to him, and we'll keep talking to Alex. There's a lot of things going on at second base right now. We’ve got to find a way to get them all in. [Devers] feels he's the third baseman. We've seen him before, so he's preparing to play third base. In Spring Training, we’ll get him innings at third base. He'll DH too, like the usual Spring Training.”
So, Devers will be splitting time between playing third base and serving as the team's designated hitter. Even though Bregman did win a Platinum Glove last year, the plan going into the year appears to be Devers playing the hot corner.
Last season, Devers recorded a .272 batting average, a .354 on-base percentage, a .516 slugging percentage, while recording 28 home runs, 83 RBI, 87 runs, and 143 hits in 525 at-bats (138 games).
So Red Sox fans, you can expect Devers to play in spring training, potentially next Wednesday, March 5.