LOS ANGELES — Buster Posey has taken his first major swing as president of baseball operations by trading for three-time All-Star third baseman and designated hitter Rafael Devers from the Boston Red Sox in an absolutely stunning deal, according to multiple reports.
The return for Devers includes left-hander Kyle Harrison and right-hander Jordan Hicks, as well as minor-league prospects James Tibbs III and right-hander Jose Bello, according to FanSided’s Robert Murray.
The Red Sox will not send any money to help pay for the remaining sum of the 11-year, $330 million extension that Devers signed before the 2023 season, according to multiple reports.
The club has not announced the trade.
Harrison was scheduled to start for San Francisco on Sunday against the Los Angeles Dodgers but was scratched and replaced by right-hander Sean Hjelle.
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Devers, a two-time Silver Slugger, has been one of baseball’s best third basemen for a number of years. Over nine seasons in the majors, Devers has a career slash line of .279/.349/.509 with 214 home runs and 695 RBIs. This season, Devers has an .894 OPS with 14 home runs and 57 RBIs.
The 28-year-old joins a lineup in much need of power. Entering Sunday, the Giants rank 19th in runs (163) and 21st in OPS (.691) since the beginning of May. On June 4, Posey designated first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. for assignment and signed Dominic Smith as part of a seismic roster shakeup.
The trade comes at a time where starting third baseman Matt Chapman is currently on the 10-day injured list due to right hand inflammation and is set to miss roughly the next three-to-four weeks. Casey Schmitt has done an excellent job of filling in for Chapman, going 5-for-19 with three homers and 11 RBIs over five games and becoming the first Giant in franchise history to hit grand slams in back-to-back games. That said, Devers will obviously take precedent.
Devers has exclusively been used as a designated hitter this season, but Devers will likely fill in for Chapman at the hot corner for the time being. Once Chapman returns, the Giants will have to figure out where Devers will play.
Devers has far better career numbers than Wilmer Flores, the Giants’ current everyday designated hitter, but Flores has been an integral part of the lineup and leads the team with 51 RBIs entering Sunday.
Flores could slide over to first base and split time with the left-handed-hitting Smith, but the Giants have talked repeatedly about using Flores as the designated hitter to him healthy after he underwent a season-ending Tenex procedure on his right knee last year.
It will be interesting to see whether Devers will change his stance on moving to first base, too.
Despite some initial tension, Devers transitioned from third base to designated hitter after the Red Sox signed fellow third baseman Alex Bregman this offseason. But in May, Devers told Boston that he would not be willing to play first base.
Check back on this developing story.
