Red Sox star Rafael Devers reached a milestone with his latest hit
Rafael Devers ended the game last night in dramatic fashion. Tonight, he wasn’t waiting around to give the Boston Red Sox the lead.
Devers sent the Fenway crowd home happy on Monday with the 499th hit of his career, a walk-off single that crashed into the left field wall to even the four-game set with the Toronto Blue Jays.
His next trip to the plate would have to wait until the Red Sox traveled to Atlanta for a short series with the Braves. Devers got a hold of a slider on the outside part of the plate and drove it 435 feet to deep center field for a three-run homer that gave Boston a first-inning lead.
Raffy's 500th hit was a big one! pic.twitter.com/JHTOF7HVjG
— Red Sox (@RedSox) June 15, 2021
The three-run blast against Braves starter Tucker Davidson was only the third home run that Devers has hit against a lefty this season. He entered the game hitting only .247/.329/.370 against southpaws this season.
Devers went through a bit of a slump recently where he inexplicably couldn’t hit fastballs. It got to the point where the Houston Astros were almost exclusively feeding him the heater. While he has improved his production against the fastball lately, this was a reminder to opposing pitching staffs of the damage Devers can do against a hanging breaking ball.
The homer also served as an impressive milestone for Devers, particularly when considering his age. Devers is only the 10th player in franchise history to reach 500 career hits before turning 25 years old.
500+ hits with the Red Sox before turning 25:
— J.P. Long (@SoxNotes) June 15, 2021
1. Bobby Doerr – 819
2. Tris Speaker – 769
3. Ted Williams – 749
4. Xander Bogaerts – 684
5. Carl Yastrzemski – 654
6. Tony Conigliaro – 634
7. Mookie Betts – 609
8. Jim Rice – 562
9. Harry Hooper – 502
10. RAFAEL DEVERS – 500
Devers won’t celebrate his 25th birthday until October, giving him the remainder of the season to climb that list. At his current pace, he’s in range to catch Mookie Betts (609) for the seventh-most hits by a Red Sox player before turning 25. Devers topped 200 hits in 2019 and if he can do that again this season, Tony Conigliaro (634) will be within reach.
This latest home run from Devers was the 90th of his career. Only Ted Williams (127) and Conigliaro (124) have hit more in a Red Sox uniform before the age of 25.
Devers drove in his fourth run of the game with a base hit in the third inning. That was his 308th career RBI, which currently sits eighth in franchise history for hitters younger than 25. He’ll climb into the top-five on that list very soon.
Devers is currently tied for sixth in the majors with 16 home runs and he trails only Toronto’s Vladimir Guerrero Jr. with his 54 RBI.
The season is far from over so there’s plenty of time for Devers to pad his accomplishments. He might not even be done tonight!