Rafael Devers Clarifies What He Was Thinking During His Bad-Look Wave-Off Moment in Giants-Marlins

Devers also issued an apology to Tony Vitello.

Rafael Devers explained why he waved off his pinch-runner during the Giants’ loss to the Marlins. | Screengrab on Twitter/@KNBR

Rafael Devers candidly explained why he reacted the way he did after being substituted in the ninth inning of the Giants’ loss to the Marlins on Sunday.

In the ninth inning of San Francisco’s 2-1 defeat, Devers was seen waving off pinch-runner Jonah Cox and looked visibly upset when the rookie came out to replace him at first base. The incident came after a leadoff walk when the Giants were trailing by a run, as manager Tony Vitello made the decision to swap out Devers with a speedier runner in hopes of stealing a late win in Miami.

Devers sulked as he walked to the dugout and avoided a bench coach who tried to give him a pat on the back. On Tuesday, Devers clarified exactly what he was thinking during the tense moment and noted that he apologized to Vitello shortly after the game:

"It was a misunderstanding. Two days prior to that I had told the manager that I had a problem with my hamstring and I thought that was the reason he was taking me out of the game. ... It just got a little bit blown out of proportion,” Devers said, via Spanish interpreter Erwin Higueros.

“I just thought [Vitello] was taking me out of my game because of my hamstring,” Devers continued. “And if he felt I was disrespecting him, that’s why I went into his office and I apologized to him.”

Rafael Devers on waving off his pinch runner in Miami:

"It was a misunderstanding. Two days prior to that I had told the manager that I had a problem with my hamstring and I thought that was the reason he was taking me out of the game ... it just got a little bit blown out of… pic.twitter.com/9ht03WUznl

— KNBR (@KNBR) June 23, 2026

Rafael Devers takes shot at Giants media for blowing wave-off incident “out of proportion”

Devers went on to take a stab at the media, who he claimed made Sunday’s wave-off incident much bigger than it actually was.

“The media in general, you guys, just blow everything out of proportion,” Devers said. “And I think it’s a reflection that I really don’t talk to you guys. So because I don’t talk to the media, things like this happen. So you guys gotta write everything and try to blow everything out of proportion. I respect the manager, I didn’t mean to be disrespectful to him. ... I think it’s because I don’t talk to the media that you guys in the media just want to write something about it and blow everything up.”

"You guys just blow everything out of proportion, and I think that's a reflection of why I really don't talk to you guys."

After explaining his side of Sunday's saga, Rafael Devers expanded on why he isn't a big fan of media. pic.twitter.com/QefO1VXsfR

— KNBR (@KNBR) June 23, 2026

Vitello, for his part, didn’t take any offense to Devers’s reaction and called it a “non-issue.”

Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey dismissed Devers’s wave-off moment as a “misstep” but did note that everybody could tell the first baseman was “frustrated” in the moment. Posey added that he didn’t see the need to discipline Devers in the wake of the incident.

“I’ll probably sit down with him, and from talking from Tony, I think he understands … setting the right example as a leader in that clubhouse,” Posey said. “Everybody has missteps. You can even point to leaders from everywhere. Everybody has missteps. So, I don’t think you can have an instant like that and say that he’s not a good teammate.”

Devers is currently in his first full season with the Giants after being traded by the Red Sox last year. The 29-year-old’s Boston tenure ended on less-than-amicable terms partly due to Devers’s attitude toward various roster changes—most notably, Devers was miffed when asked to play first base after Triston Casas suffered a season-ending injury.

In any case, it looks like the Devers’s wave-off drama was, indeed, overblown. The Giants star will look to improve his play ahead of the August 3 trade deadline or risk being dealt amid what’s shaking out to be a career-worst campaign for the three-time All-Star in 2026.

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