Rafael Devers is taking the high road in response to his former team.
Boston Red Sox chairman Tom Werner made some shady comments this week about the San Francisco Giants slugger Devers in an interview with Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe. Werner ripped Devers, who used to play for the Red Sox before being traded to the Giants last season, over his unwillingness to play first base in Boston.
“I don’t like to speak ill of any player, I’d like to say that he’s a wonderful person,” Werner said of Devers. “But, of course, when we had an injury at first base [to Triston Casas], his unwillingness to play that position was extremely discouraging.
“It was a discouraging episode,” added Werner. “Just pick up a glove.”
Speaking with reporters on Tuesday, Devers was asked for a response to Werner’s remarks.
“That’s in the past,” said Devers through his translator, per Justice delos Santos of The Mercury News. “I don’t want to talk about it. It’s over. I don’t have any opinions on what he said. So, let’s concentrate here and just leave the past in the past.”
The three-time All-Star Devers, 29, spent the first eight-and-a-half seasons of his MLB career with the Red Sox and won a World Series with them in 2018. But Devers’ relationship with the franchise quickly soured last year after Boston moved him from third base to designated hitter in order to accommodate Alex Bregman’s arrival.
When the Red Sox asked Devers to then move to first base after Casas’ injury, Devers refused and then publicly went scorched-earth on the team. Devers would end up being traded to the Giants in June for four players.
Now Bregman is no longer in Boston (signing with the Chicago Cubs as a free agent this offseason), and three of the four players that Devers was traded for have since been rerouted by the Red Sox as well. Meanwhile, Devers hit .236 with 20 homers and 51 RBIs during his first season with the Giants but seemingly caused some drama while in San Francisco too.
