When Rafael Devers struggled to begin his first season as the Boston Red Sox's designated hitter, he was advised to speak with David Ortiz.
Ortiz has seemingly endless wisdom to pass on to Devers, from the former face of the Red Sox franchise to the current one. He's advised Devers, a fellow Dominican native, throughout his big league career and supported him through his transition to DH during spring training.
Devers was recently asked to take up first base for the Red Sox after Triston Casas' season-ending knee injury, which he staunchly refused. The story of Devers' second contested position change blew up even further when Red Sox principal owner John Henry flew out to meet with him in Kansas City. Again, Ortiz has offered his perspective to Devers.
"When you're the man in the team, when you're the guy the organization counts on, there are times when you have to take your ego and pack it away," Ortiz said in Spanish in a May 12 interview on Mega 97.9, a New York merengue and salsa radio station.
Red Sox legend David Ortiz advises Rafael Devers to do what's best for Boston in first base debate
Ortiz made another comment about Devers' need to quell his ego for the betterment of the team after he initially refused to move to third base to accommodate Alex Bregman on the roster. He eventually accepted the move to DH, but the front office's request for him to pick up his glove again feels different and desperate after everything it said to get him to accept his first move off the field this year.
No matter how Boston's act feels, Ortiz is the perfect person to speak with Devers in this situation. Ortiz is most known for his work as the Red Sox's DH, but he played first base 278 times in his Hall of Fame career. His work wasn't perfect and he logged 22 errors in his time on the field, but it's safe to say no one remembers Ortiz for his work on the dirt.
Devers feels wronged by the front office, and he has an argument for that — Craig Breslow and Co. should've handled the Bregman signing and his initial position change more honestly. But Devers last season asked the front office to sign more players to bolster the lineup around him, and the team delivered by signing Bregman.
Many reporters and analysts believe Devers will eventually begin taking grounders to later transition to playing first base for Boston. That would be best for the team, since it would open the DH spot for Masataka Yoshida and allow more flexibility in the outfield to call up Roman Anthony. Devers did what was best for the Red Sox when he became the DH this year and, hopefully, Ortiz and others can convince him to do the same.