NEWTON, Mass. (AP) — The Boston Red Sox should just leave designated hitter Rafael Devers alone and let him decide if he wants to start playing first base, Hall of Famer David Ortiz told The Associated Press on Monday.
The Red Sox signed Alex Bregman to a $120-million, three-year contract in spring training and told Devers he was going to be the fulltime DH.
That was, until first baseman Triston Casas was lost for the season after rupturing a tendon in his left knee and undergoing surgery in early May.
Speaking at his charity golf tournament — the David Ortiz Soiree of Hearts — the former Red Sox slugger said any move should be up to Devers.
“He’s doing great as the DH. They asked for it, and he’s doing great as the DH,” Ortiz said. “Once (the) Casas situation goes down … In people’s minds, it was: ‘Devers goes to first and (Masataka) Yoshida goes to DH and we are a better team’. Yeah, that’s what you put in your mind. But guess what? The kid was asked in a spring training to just hit and now all of a sudden you want to switch him over. It takes time.”
The 49-year-old Ortiz, who made his way to the Hall as mainly a DH, didn’t say Devers shouldn’t make the switch, but any choice should come after he learns the position.
“I will say this: At one point, if Devers would like to practice at first base, and would like to go back to playing the whole defense thing, that is all on him,” said Ortiz, sitting down with the AP while signing souvenirs for golfers.
“We asked him to be the DH. Fully asked him to be the DH,” Big Papi said. “I remember that conversation in spring training. It’s a different situation and the guy’s doing great at what you asked him for. He’s giving you what you asked for, even if it wasn’t what he was agreeing on.”
During spring training, Devers initially balked at the move to DH.
Last month, Devers told the Red Sox he wasn’t interested in playing first and owner John Henry flew to Kansas City to meet with him.
After a historically poor start, Devers enters Monday batting .286 with 12 homers and a major-league leading 52 RBIs.
Ortiz said the game has changed from when he was told he was going to be mainly a DH.
“They thought I was going to fit in good at DH and play first once in a while,” he said. “Baseball was different back then. You just wanted to fit in.”
Ortiz’s golf tournament benefits the David Ortiz Children’s Fund, which raises funds that provide lifesaving heart surgeries and care for children in New England and his native country, the Dominican Republic.
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