Boston Red Sox Trade Away Superstar in Out-of-Nowhere Trade
The Boston Red Sox have been a team that has been allowing their superstar players be traded away and Sunday was no exception as the team reportedly traded away designated hitter Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants. This news is massive and has a lot of different ripple effects coming off sweeping the New York Yankees over the weekend. Let’s take a deeper dive into what just happened.
Boston Red Sox Trade Away Rafael Devers
The Boston Red Sox have been dealing with some depth issues in the infield and moving on from third baseman Rafael Devers in a blockbuster trade to the San Francisco Giants, per Fansided’s Robert Murray. The players going back to Boston from San Francisco are right-handed pitchers Jordan Hicks and Kyle Harrison as well as two prospects including outfielder James Tibbs and Jose Bello.
Rafael Devers is currently in the third season of a 10-year, $313.5 million contract and does not have any opt-outs, meaning he will be calling the Bay Area his home for the next eight-plus years as no money is being sent in the deal. Devers has been hitting well this season with a .905 OPS with 15 home runs, 58 RBI, and 47 runs scored as strictly a designated hitter.
He would not move to first base following the injuries to the Red Sox after being told he would be the primary designated hitter this season and this allows Boston some flexibility to bolster the roster. Now, with this move, the speculation regarding the future of players like Jarren Duran is going to be in question.Â
For San Francisco, this move adds to a line that the Giants are looking to compete. With the future of Matt Chapman in question as he is dealing with a sprained hand, this adds another prolific bat to compete in the National League West. The Giants entered Sunday with the 23rd-best OPS in MLB and with their offense being the weakest link, they wasted no time in regards to bolster the roster.
This continues to be a massive move as the team is looking to compete after sitting just one game back of the division lead. This is a massive trade that was not hinted at in the slightest and tells us how both teams are looking at the 2025 season and beyond.
This could be the beginning of a seller’s market as the Boston Red Sox return does not seem as massive as expected in a deal of Devers. James Tibbs was the fourth-ranked prospect in the Giants system while Bello is outside of the organization’s top-30. Tibbs is an outfielder in High-A while Bello is in Rookie ball, so the prospects are not going to be in the majors for a few years at the very least.
