Mookie Betts stunned by Rafael Devers trade from Red Sox to Giants
Red Sox fans didn't get to enjoy the euphoria from a three-game sweep over the Yankees for very long, as the team traded away Rafael Devers Sunday night just hours after Boston broke out the brooks against New York. All the good feelings from the sweep quickly disappeared as fans dealt with the franchise trading away yet another star player.
It brought back all those bad memories of the Mookie Betts trade in 2020, when Boston received next to nothing from the Los Angeles Dodgers for a franchise player and future Hall of Famer. The two trades have a lot of differences, but the shock is incredibly similar.
The Red Sox sent Devers and his remaining contract -- a little over $250 million through the 2033 season -- to the San Francisco Giants on Sunday and received very little in return for a player of his caliber. It was essentially a salary dump by the Red Sox, who had reportedly grown tired of Devers' attitude and unwillingness to move around the diamond.
The Red Sox create that drama themselves by not being up front with Devers while pursuing Alex Bregman in free agency, and acting like Bregman would come in and play second base. Instead, the Red Sox moved Devers to DH in the spring, creating a rift that just kept getting worse with the three-time All-Star. It culminated with Sunday's trade.
In the end, the Red Sox traded away a homegrown talent who was the last remaining piece from the 2018 World Series Champion Red Sox. Betts, who has gone on to win two World Series with Los Angeles, was shocked that his former teammate will now be playing for his rival in the National League West.
Mookie Betts calls the Rafael Devers trade "crazy"
The Giants just so happened to be playing the Dodgers on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball as news of the Devers trade was taking over the sports world. Asked about the deal following Los Angels' 5-4 win, Betts was seemingly at a loss for words.
"I just thought it was crazy," Betts said . "Nothing really to say, it's just crazy."
Betts was a superstar in Boston and was supposed to be the face of the franchise after he won AL MVP honors in 2018 and helped the team win another World Series. But the Red Sox front office wasn't willing to pony up the money it would take to sign him long-term, and traded him for Alex Verdugo, Connor Wong, and Jeter Downs in one of the worst trades in baseball history.
Betts signed a 12-year, $365 million contract with Los Angeles, and has rewarded them with two more titles, four All-Star appearances, and a 30.4 WAR over the last six seasons.
Betts didn't intend to reach out to Devers after Sunday's swap, since they'll now be seeing a lot of each other going forward. The Dodgers currently lead the Giants by two games in the NL West, and will square off again in a three-game set in San Francisco July 11-13.
"I'll see him real soon and I'll be laughing and joking with him as I always do," said Betts.
