BALTIMORE -- Sometimes, things have to get worse before they can get better.
The Red Sox know that “better” will come -- sooner rather than later -- for Rafael Devers, who went 0-for-3 with two walks and three strikeouts in Boston’s 8-5 loss to Baltimore at Camden Yards on Monday.
The performance extended what has been a treacherous 0-for-19 start to the season for Devers, whose 15 strikeouts set the record for most whiffs in a player’s first five games of a season. The previous record was 14 K’s, set by Ian Happ (Cubs, 2018) and Domingo Santana (Astros, 2014).
Devers’ 0-fer streak isn’t quite historically relevant just yet. Last year, Bobby Dalbec started the season 0-for-19 for Boston, though that came over the course of 11 games, including pinch-hit opportunities, with 12 K’s over that span.
It’s important to note, before breaking down the context of this streak for Devers, that it’s only been five games. As manager Alex Cora pointed out, if Devers had a stretch of hitting (or the lack thereof) in the second half of the season, it wouldn’t be such a driving force in conversations about the Red Sox.
“It's a small sample size,” Cora said. “You know, this happens in July or August, we'd not even be talking about it. But it's early in the season, and of course everybody is paying attention to it.”
It also doesn’t help that Devers was the subject of chatter all spring, after he expressed his frustration with Boston’s plan to make him its everyday DH following the club’s signing of 2024 American League Gold Glove Award-winning third baseman Alex Bregman to a three-year, $120 million deal over the offseason.
As camp progressed, though, and more conversations were had, Devers’ stance softened. At this point, he just wants to play and do “whatever they want me to do.” That means embracing and adjusting to his new role.
“Obviously this is not a position that I've done in the past,” Devers said via interpreter Carlos Villoria-Benítez. “So I need to get used to it. But I feel good, I feel good. I feel that the team is playing tremendous games, good baseball, just that things are not going our way. But I think that's going to change, for sure.”
So what’s up with Devers’ slump, if it’s not “the DH thing,” as Cora put it, or his shoulder? Remember, Devers’ spring involved just five games (14 at-bats) after his debut was delayed multiple times while he tweaked his mechanics -- which are still a work-in-progress. Glimpses came through on Monday, though. Particularly in his ninth-inning plate appearance against Félix Bautista that ended with a walk.
“There was one swing in the last at-bat that I was like, 'Okay, we're getting there,' -- the foul ball to left field,” Cora said. “He was behind the ball, and he actually got the barrel to it. Good at-bat, too. …
“So yeah, the strikeouts are up there. But the one thing -- and we'll find it mechanically -- the good thing is that he's not chasing pitches, you know? He's swinging at pitches in the zone. Obviously the bad thing is he's swinging and missing those pitches. But there were some positives today, and we just build from that. And hopefully, like I said yesterday, hopefully Wednesday is the day that he gets one, hits it and he can breathe and go from there.”
Devers is sure of himself and remains positive. From his view, what he needs most is a few more in-game reps, during which he can focus on the game and not overthink his swing. His mechanics are coming along, as was evident to Cora on Monday, and once Devers finds a sweet spot at the plate, he’ll let ‘er rip.
“I don't know how far [away] my hits are, but I feel like I'm … like I said many times before, I feel good, I feel comfortable,” Devers said. “I know the type of hitter that I am, I know that the hits are gonna come sooner rather than later. … It's just a matter of time.
So while Devers’ start to the season, his ninth in the Majors, hasn’t been what he or Boston desired, neither are too worried -- five games, after all, is just a small sample size in a long baseball season.
“He's gonna keep playing,” Cora said. “He's gonna keep playing. There's -- the off-day is tomorrow, yeah, and [then] we're gonna play him. He's gonna hit second for us [Wednesday]. And he will hit, no doubt about it. That’s something that we all know. It's just a matter of when.”