Boston Red Sox: Three up, three down from the month of May

Like Devers, Michael Chavis earned a spot on this side of the list after April as well, but he certainly deserves to be here again. En route to being named AL Rookie of the month, Chavis hit seven home runs and collected 19 RBI. His .248 batting average for the month isn’t inspiring on the surface, but two short cold streaks (0-18 near the beginning of the month and 3-18 at its end) are largely to blame for that.

As a rookie, he’s going to struggle with inconsistency and the lows will at times be very low indeed, but he’s also done more than enough to prove he can handle major league pitching. At this early stage of his career, it’s more important to see the things he does well.

Despite his lackluster batting average, Chavis still got on base at a respectable .331 clip and slugged .457. As he readjusts to pitchers after they have adjusted to him, both of those numbers, in addition to his average, should rise.

In the field, Chavis has been something of a savior. Though a natural third baseman, he’s adapted almost seamlessly to the middle of the infield. He’s made just three errors so far and helped the Red Sox survive injuries to Eduardo Nunez and Dustin Pedroia. Chavis has played so well, in fact, that he should at this point be considered the favorite to succeed Pedroia at second once the veteran hangs up his glove.

Chavis’ development is a continuation of Boston’s recent run of developing major league talent in the field. Mookie Betts, Andrew Benintendi, Devers, Christian Vazquez, Xander Bogaerts, Jackie Bradley Jr., and Chavis are all home-grown and have all proven themselves in the bigs. A good run over two months certainly doesn’t make a career, but it’s a very good start.