More details are coming to light in the aftermath of the blockbuster Rafael Devers trade.
Boston Red Sox general manager Craig Breslow and team president Sam Kennedy addressed the media on Monday to detail what went into the massive deal that sent Devers to the San Francisco Giants. During that availability, Breslow explained that while Devers never formally requested a trade, his camp had indicated a move may be for the best.
"There were times during the course of conversations with Raffy's camp where they had indicated that perhaps a fresh start would be best for both sides," Breslow said. "We were committed to trying to work through this, and like Sam said, ultimately we weren't able to achieve that alignment.
"This does represent that chance to reset on our end and for Raffy to get a fresh start with a historic franchise."
The deal came about on Sunday afternoon and shook the baseball world, as the Red Sox sent the slugger to the Giants for righty Jordan Hicks, lefty Kyle Harrison, outfield prospect James Tibbs III and minor-league righty Jose Bello.
A three-time All-Star who signed a 10-year, $313.5 million contract with the Red Sox in 2023, Devers is batting .272 with 15 homers and 58 RBIs in 73 games.
However, his relationship with the team began to deteriorate when the team signed Gold Glove third baseman Alex Bregman during spring training and asked Devers to move to DH; he balked before agreeing to the switch. When first baseman Triston Casas sustained a season-ending knee injury, the Red Sox approached Devers about playing the field; he declined, saying the front office “should do their jobs” and look for another player.
"I think it was pretty clear that we couldn't find alignment with Raffy, that is the truth. We all worked at it over the last several months going back to the off-season, starting with [manager] Alex Cora and Craig and the staff and then up to me and all the way up to [owner] John Henry," Kennedy explained.
"We worked at it, we had a different vision for him going forward than he had and we couldn't get there. We couldn't find alignment and we reached that inflection point and made the decision to make a big move."
However, Breslow wanted to make it clear that the Red Sox aren't giving up on this season despite shipping off their best hitter. As it stands, Boston is on the heels of a three-game sweep against the AL East rival Yankees and sits fourth in the division with a 37-36 record.
The Red Sox also have a plethora of young talent rising through the ranks, with the big three of Marcelo Mayer, Kristian Campbell and Roman Anthony all making their big-league debuts this season in recent call-ups.
"This is in no way a signifying a waving of the white flag on 2025," Breslow said. "We are as committed as we were six months ago to putting a winning team on the field, to competing for the division and making a deep post-season run."
-- With files from the Associated Press
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