Blockbuster! Giants trade for Rafael Devers

Buster Posey pays a big price for a big upgrade.

The San Francisco Giants have addressed their offensive deficiencies in the biggest way possible, acquiring slugger Rafael Devers from the Boston Red Sox. The exact trade is unknown as of this initial posting, but according to Fansided’s Robert Murray:

Alex Pavlovic basically confirmed the deal before it was confirmed on-air when he posted this:

Only to follow that up moments later with this:

The move reunites Harrison with pitching coach Andrew Bailey and gets Jordan Hicks’s tricky contract ($12.5 million in each of the next three seasons) off the books. MLB Trade Rumors compiled the rest of the deal: the Giants’ #3 prospect (according to the McCovey Chronicles community) James Tibbs and #44 prospect, pitcher Jose Bello.

On Friday, I looked at what sort of “Wheeler for Beltran” move might be available to Buster Posey and concluded that the lack of a 1:1 comparison meant that he’d have to “go wild” to execute a bold move. This one certainly qualifies, and Harrison was the exact player who would need to be included in such a deal.

Devers is a three-time All-Star, twice a Silver Slugger, with a career OPS of .858 (1,052 games) in 9 seasons, all previously with the Boston Red Sox. The 28-year old signed an 11-year, $331 million extension with Boston in the 2022-2023 offseason, so, he’s locked in for a loooooooooooooong time. He carries a $29.3 million Competitive Balance Tax figure.

This is a wild, WILD move because it happens just before Kyle Harrison’s scheduled start against the Dodgers in Los Angeles which thrust Sean Hjelle into the starting/opening role. Too, Rafael Devers has had a turbulent season thanks to the Red Sox yanking his chain. He was told he’d be their third baseman, then they went and signed Alex Bregman. But most baseball fans hate when players get mad at their team, and so we can safely say that most Giants fans — who would ordinarily proclaim, “Whatever you say, Mr. Posey!” — will scratch their heads at the acquisition of a Problem Player… whatever that means. In Devers’ defense, the Boston Red Sox are not a world-class organization when it comes to the treatment of their players. To wit:

I don’t think we should take the word of the franchise that dumped Mookie Betts, you know what I mean? What’s fun here is that the Red Sox will be in San Francisco on Friday…

To his credit, Devers hasn’t let the position change to first base get him down. He’s slugging .494 and carrying a .400 OBP in 330 plate appearances. His career clutch stats are pretty crazy: In 852 high leverage plate appearances (according to Baseball Reference), he’s slashing .280/.366/.499. In interleague play (842 PA), he’s slashing .293/.371/.565, so maybe the league switch won’t slow him down very much? This is THE middle of the order threat the Giants have sorely lacked for years and even though it’s a 4-for-1, it’s hard to argue with it. Here’s hoping he’s cool with becoming the everyday first baseman/designated hitter!

The Giants have landed their big fish. This comes following the acquisition of Willy Adames in this most recent offseason, signing him to the greatest contract in team history (to that point). Devers can now take the mantle of being the highest paid Giant. Will he hit his way into team history and is Buster Posey going to be a Hall of Fame executive, too?