Rafael Devers has been sad with the Boston Crimson Sox for the higher a part of the final 4 months, and one franchise legend feels supervisor Alex Cora is responsible.
Pedro Martinez shared his ideas on the drama between Devers and the Crimson Sox throughout Tuesday’s “B/R Walkoff Dwell.” The Corridor of Fame pitcher mentioned he believes Cora has carried out a poor job retaining issues together with his star slugger in-house.
For starters, Martinez feels Cora may have merely requested Devers to take some reps at first base with out discussing the 28-year-old altering positions once more.
“If Alex wished to inform Devers to go to first and get some floor balls till (the workforce will get) wholesome, enthusiastic about the long run, Devers would have gone to first, catch some floor balls, and no person would have recognized that Devers was being educated to be a primary baseman,” Martinez mentioned. “Not even Devers would in all probability notice that he was really being (conditioned) to grow to be a primary baseman, as a result of Devers by no means says no to any kind of labor that you simply ask him to do. He’ll go to first. He’ll go to the outfield and catch (fly) balls.”
Martinez says the identical is true of how the state of affairs was dealt with after the Crimson Sox signed Gold Glove Award-winning third baseman Alex Bregman.
“I do not suppose it ought to have been on the market that he was in all probability gonna be tried at first base and that Bregman was gonna be the one man at third,” Martinez mentioned. “As a result of what occurs if Bregman will get harm unexpectedly? You must go to Devers to play third.
“You possibly can’t inform him, ‘Throw your glove away.’ You possibly can’t inform him, ‘Hey, we wish you to now decide up a glove at first and grow to be a primary baseman.’ The man’s shy sufficient. He does not need to look dangerous. Imagine me, I am a witness. No one needs to go in entrance of 45,000 folks and embarrass himself making an attempt a place that he by no means performed.”
