Veteran Red Sox Players 'Not Happy' With Rafael Devers's Public Complaints

Red Sox general manager Craig Breslow approached Devers about playing first base, and Devers did not take it well.

Boston Red Sox star Rafael Devers is not happy that the front office asked if he would be willing to play first base. / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Boston Red Sox starting first baseman Triston Casas is out for the year after tearing his patellar tendon, and the franchise is looking for a replacement at first base.

While manager Alex Cora said publicly that he did not plan to ask newly positioned designated hitter Rafael Devers about potentially playing first base, general manager Craig Breslow had no problem inquiring.

Devers, who has already been frustrated with the Red Sox front office dating back to spring training, did not take it well. Devers was asked by members of the media during spring training if he would be willing to play a different position after the team signed free agent Alex Bregman, who rates much better as a defender at third base than Devers. Devers responded that he was not interested in switching positions.

Eventually, Devers gave in after talking with Cora, and he was earmarked as the team's full-time DH. So when Breslow went to ask Devers about another position change in the wake of the Casas injury, he wasn't having it.

"I just feel like it's not an appropriate decision by them to ask me to play another position," Devers said on Thursday. "It was the GM that I spoke with. I'm not sure what he has with me. He played ball and I would like to think he knows that changing positions like that isn't easy."

According to Christopher Smith of Mass Live, Devers's teammates didn't love his answer.

"One reporter told me that one of [Devers's] teammates told him to 'just stop talking.' We've also at Mass Live learned that veteran players—players who have been around the league a long time—were not happy with the situation, with his inflexibility and the way he brought it out publicly."

An unnamed player supposedly told Rafael Devers to "just stop talking." 😳 pic.twitter.com/g7jFpFFUAO

— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) May 9, 2025

For now, Devers is the team's designated hitter.

The Red Sox are 20-19 on the season, and two games back in the AL East of the first-place New York Yankees.

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