Just moments before the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants began their rubber match on Sunday, major news broke of a trade involving one of MLB’s star hitters.
The Boston Red Sox had traded Rafael Devers to the Giants for a package of players, including pitchers Kyle Harrison and Jordan Hicks, and prospects Jose Bello and James Tibbs III.
Harrison was also the Giants’ scheduled starting pitcher for the game, so he was scratched and instead replaced by Sean Hjelle. Joey Lucchesi was also added to their active roster and ended up pitching in the game.
That forced the Dodgers to “scramble a little bit” to make some changes to their game planning and preparation as they found out about the news just about 20 minutes before the game, according to manager Dave Roberts.
“Obviously, a huge trade for those two clubs,” Roberts said. “Trying to figure out changing the lineup that would give us the best chance to still kind of prepare for a bullpen game, essentially. And it was good to see us find a way to win a ballgame.”
Trades of this caliber typically don’t happen at this point in the season. They are generally reserved for the offseason or closer to the trade deadline.
Devers also signed a 10-year contract extension with the Red Sox in 2023, which made the deal even more surprising.
“Yeah, I think that Buster (Posey), they’re going for it,” Roberts said. “They put themselves in a position to make a run, and they got better.
“The Red Sox had their reasons for acquiring (Jordan) Hicks and that first-round pick last year, and (Kyle) Harrison. I don’t know enough, but obviously both teams, I’m sure, are pretty excited about it.”
Devers hit .272/.401/.504 in 73 games with the Red Sox this season with 18 doubles, 15 homers, 58 RBI, 47 runs and a .905 on-base plus slugging. He ranks inside MLB’s top-10 in RBI, on-base percentage and walks.
He is a three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger Award winner. Over his career, he’s a 279 hitter with 663 runs and 696 RBI across 1,053 MLB games.
The Giants adding a player of that caliber to their lineup makes them a much better team, and it’s something they’ve been lacking in previous seasons.
“I mean, they’re a good team. To add a good hitter like that makes them a little bit more dangerous than they already are,” Tommy Edman said. “Fortunately, we didn’t have to face him in this series.
“And I’m sure it’ll change some preparation down the road, but we’re on to the next series.”
Rafael Devers in company with two Dodgers sluggers
The Dodgers will definitely need to add some extra preparation when facing Devers.
Since 2018, Devers’ 666 RBI are fifth most in MLB over that span, while his 205 home runs are 10th most and his 476 extra-base hits are tied for third most.
He is one of four players to have an OPS of .850 or better in each of the last five seasons, joining Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman. Since 2019, his 25.9 fWAR is 12th best among position players.
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