Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz knows what it’s like to be a designated hitter for one of MLB’s premier franchises. Ortiz didn’t fully blossom until getting to the Red Sox in 2003. There, he developed into one of the best designated hitters in MLB history.
So, there’s no better person to weigh in on the drama between the team and star hitter Rafael Devers. After asking Devers to become the team’s full-time designated hitter in the offseason, the Red Sox changed course, and asked if Devers would play first base following Tristan Casas’ brutal knee injury. Devers declined, and had a few choice words to say about how the Red Sox’s front office approached the situation.
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While Ortiz did not weigh in on Devers’ issues with the front office, the Hall of Famer agreed with Devers’ decision to stick it out at DH, according to the Associated Press.
“He’s doing great as the DH. They asked for it, and he’s doing great as the DH,” Ortiz said. “Once [the] Casas situation goes down … In people’s minds, it was: ‘Devers goes to first and [Masataka] Yoshida goes to DH and we are a better team’. Yeah, that’s what you put in your mind. But guess what? The kid was asked in a spring training to just hit and now all of a sudden you want to switch him over. It takes time.”
After a slow start, Devers has excelled in his new position. The slugger is hitting .286/.408/.515, with 12 home runs, in 61 games. Devers’ 156 wRC+, an advanced stat that measures a player’s offensive performance, is a career-high. Despite starting the season 0-for-21 at the plate, he’s now experiencing the best offensive season of his career.
Devers’ performance has mostly quieted talk about another position change. While the Red Sox could hypothetically put out a better lineup if Devers were to play first base, why mess with something that’s going well? That’s essentially the argument Ortiz made.
While Devers has performed well, the Red Sox haven’t lived up to expectations yet. The team sits at 29-32 entering play Monday, good for fourth place in the American League East. The ship appears to have sailed on Devers playing the field again, though those calls could get louder should the team continue to scuffle late into the summer.
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