The Rafael Devers position debate continues to bubble instead of de-escalate. Since Devers’ stood his ground and self-proclaimed himself to be the de-facto Red Sox third baseman, players and baseball analysts have publicly taken a stance on whether Devers should move to another infield position for incoming third (or perhaps second) baseman Alex Bregman.
ESPN’s senior MLB insider and columnist Jeff Passan gave his take on how the Sox should address their infield deadlock on the "Baseball Tonight" podcast.
“They are buying Rafael Devers’ bat, and they can move him to wherever the hell they want to,” he said.
Passan has a fair argument. Boston deserves to put Devers wherever it wants in the lineup. The Sox are footing a hefty bill of $29 million a year to keep him on their payroll for the next nine years. So unless he’s contractually tied to third base, Devers should cooperate instead of resist.
Jeff Passan argues Red Sox can move Rafael Devers wherever they want due to his high pay
Although it should be that straightforward, Passan’s rationale doesn’t account for a key component: Bregman’s contract. With an opt-out after the first and second years of his deeal, the Sox gave Bregman an easy-out whenever he pleases. The Red Sox must carefully consider the strategic direction they wish to take when determining how to fix the infield issue.
Factoring in Bregman’s contract structure, Boston has two options. If the Sox hope to keep him for the entirety of his contract, they’re almost strong-armed into keeping Bregman happy. Although the veteran has openly stated that he’ll play wherever manager Alex Cora puts him, the Red Sox should lean towards leaving him at third base and shifting Devers to another position. But if the Sox only signed Bregman to meet the financial bar they set for themselves during the offseason, they can roll the dice on Bregman opting out after his first or second year and leave Devers at third to prevent significant long-term changes to their roster.
Devers’ comments have set off a chain reaction that’s raising valid questions. While losing Bregman to free agency within one year might sting, losing Devers would have rippling impacts that could impact the Sox for several years. Passan’s logic is objectively right, but there’s nothing objective about Devers’ stubbornness. The Red Sox need to tread lightly and not neglect Devers’ feelings or take advantage of Bregman’s teamwork to find a winning solution.