SAN FRANCISCO — Rafael Devers had no interest in talking about his past life as a member of the Red Sox on Tuesday at Oracle Park. His body language, however, told the whole story.
Devers, who retained his smily, happy-go-lucky countenance at times on the field this season but kept to himself and often looked downcast — if not downright angry — behind the scenes, was a rejuvenated man as he was introduced ahead of his Giants debut. He was greeted with smoke cannons as he entered the park in left field, vowed to play wherever the team asked him and palled around with home run king Barry Bonds. The drama of a tumultuous final four-plus months in Boston was behind him.
Devers, made that clear on numerous occasions.
“That’s in the past,” Devers said through translator Erwin Higueros. “I’m moving forward. I really don’t want to talk about it.”
Devers, much like his former bosses Sam Kennedy, Craig Breslow and Alex Cora, didn’t rip the other side of a messy divorce that came to a head Sunday when the Red Sox shipped Devers to the Giants in a shocking, five-player blockbuster. He thanked the Red Sox organization for signing him as an amateur in his opening statement and later answered a question about Boston fans by expressing gratitude for their support. There was no reminiscing, rehashing, reconciling or rewriting history. Devers didn’t even give his old team bulletin board material when asked about Boston’s upcoming series by the Bay this weekend.
“Obviously, the goal is to win the games, right?” he said. “But I will try to give my 100% and try to win the series.”
Devers’ production didn’t suffer because of the behind-the-scenes tension he had with the club since spring training, when Breslow and manager Alex Cora moved him to designated hitter to accommodate the addition of Gold Glove third baseman Alex Bregman. Despite a horrible start (0-for-19 with 15 strikeouts), Devers still powered Boston’s offense through 73 games by hitting .272 with 15 homers, 18 doubles, 58 RBIs and a .905 OPS.
Outside of the batter’s box, though, as Breslow said Monday, something was amiss. Devers, clearly disenchanted with his Boston experience that had included a World Series title and $300+ million contract, was no longer the jovial figure he had previously been. Devers made his displeasure with the organization — and Breslow — clear in a May 8 media scrum at Fenway Park. From that point on, he stayed quiet, refusing countless media requests — including those of rightsholders like FOX and NESN — much to the chagrin of team officials. On numerous occasions, Devers brushed off asks from team employees with a quick “no” and left Fenway in a hurry. Devers, often donning wireless headphones, kept to himself and kept his head down in the clubhouse.
Things were instantly different Tuesday, though, as a chipper Devers took questions from Bay Area-reporters and smiled and laughed with a group of new bosses that included president of baseball operations Buster Posey, general manager Zack Minasian and manager Bob Melvin. Devers laughed loudly when an Oracle Park employee, without knowing there was a press conference going on, loudly interrupted by taking a phone call. He excitedly talked about how his new No. 16 was a good luck charm during his days in the minors. And he couldn’t contain his excitement being around Bonds, who sat in the first row for the press conference on the club level and later talked shop with Devers during batting practice.
“I think just looking at him, my game has already improved a lot,” Devers quipped.
Devers never demanded a trade from the Red Sox, but his agents made it clear he’d be open to one. He didn’t have advance notice a deal was coming Sunday but wasn’t necessarily beaten up about the news when he was taken off Boston’s team plane and told to gather his belongings at Fenway Park, then head west. There wasn’t a no-trade clause in the $313.5 million deal Devers signed two years ago — Chaim Bloom wasn’t a fan of such provisions — but the guess here is that Devers would have waived one to get out of town.
“I took the news like a man and I appreciate the fact they traded me in order to give me an opportunity to continue playing baseball,” Devers said.
Devers had only played nine games at Oracle Park before Tuesday but it must have immediately felt like a home. Posey referred to him as “a dude,” then got laughs when he said he loved Devers’ strategic answers about putting Boston behind him. Fans were already donning Devers’ No. 16 jerseys — and had given him a standing ovation — by the time he laced a 111.4 mph RBI double into the right field gap in the third inning of his club debut. Signage and video boards around the ballpark provided a heavy dose of Devers. With a clean slate came a fresh outlook.
“I’m moving forward from the situation in Boston and looking ahead to being a San Francisco Giant,” Devers said.
In Devers’ new spot in the San Francisco’s clubhouse — which spanned three lockers — there was no red (or alternate yellow, or green, for that matter) to be found. Instead was a collection of shoes, a supply of brand new team-issued Giants gear… and a large plastic container filled with Starburst.
The affable, smily kid Red Sox fans fell in love with was back — but in orange and black.