Former Boston Red Sox Slugger Named Ideal Trade Candidate for Rival

It’s been well over a year since the Boston Red Sox dealt star designated hitter Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants in a shocking move made to reset the clubhouse culture. Now just over a year into his Giants tenure, San Francisco is looking to move on from the 29-year-old slugger, reportedly shopping him and other high-priced veterans, Willy Adames and Matt Chapman, ahead of the trade deadline, to no avail. San Francisco will almost certainly continue to shop the trio into the offseason as they look to rebuild one of the worst teams in baseball, and according to one prominent baseball analyst, the New York Yankees could be a perfect landing spot. 

“He would be perfect with the Yankees,” said ESPN’s Buster Olney on the 'Baseball Tonight' podcast about Devers. “All he would have to do there is just hit,” he continued. The logic for Olney and co-host Paul Hembekides was simple: the Yankees are definitively Aaron Judge’s team, and he is expected to answer any questions from the media and keep the clubhouse in order; all Devers would have to do is show up to the park and hit. 

Devers is amidst one of the best seasons of his now 10-year big league career, hitting .258/.340/.522/.864 with a career-high 36 home runs entering play on Saturday afternoon, all while playing in one of the most pitcher-friendly environments in baseball, San Francisco’s Oracle Park. Devers being dealt to New York would undoubtedly be a worst-case scenario for the Red Sox, who would then have to see their former slugger at least 13 times a year. Devers sports an impressive slash line of .266/.335/.520/.855 with 18 home runs, the most in any non-Oracle or Fenway Park, in 64 games played at Yankee Stadium. The 29-year-old, of course, would become a force to be reckoned with at Fenway as well, as he hit .291/.361/.522/.883 with 96 career home runs at the park in his first eight and a half seasons of professional play. 

To further add insult to injury, the cost to acquire Devers' services would likely come at an incredibly steep discount, with San Francisco simply looking to offload the remaining money on the deal, leaving New York with ample trade capital to continue to load up for a World Series run. 

The league's economic future remains uncertain amid the ongoing labor dispute. However, if the Players' Union has its way, there will be no salary cap in the sport, further paving the way for New York to make a big splash and land their former rival. 

The Red Sox are 80-68 and in third place in the American League East.