As you probably expected, all the Red Sox’s dirty laundry has been dragged out in the open since Rafael Devers got shipped out on Father’s Day.
He’s now the San Francisco Giants’ problem to have, as Boston clearly had grown tired of his antics. But some of those antics were overblown, as Kristian Campbell has strongly pushed back against reports of animosity between him and Devers. Both sides have turned a new leaf, as Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow believes there’s a real chance his team wins more games, and the Giants acquired what Clayton Kershaw described as a top-10 hitter in the sport “at worst” for pennies on the dollar.
Even with the divorce finalized, some details continue to emerge.
The Boston Globe‘s Peter Abraham and Alex Speier reported on Friday that to the Red Sox’s frustration, Devers wouldn’t conduct “even perfunctory postgame interviews” with New England Sports Network (NESN). He did speak to NESN after hitting a home run to walk off the Atlanta Braves back on May 17. He did not, however, speak to Fox. That responsibility fell on the shoulders of Jarren Duran.
Devers grew increasingly unwilling to do what the Red Sox asked, whether that meant moving off third base to DH, shifting to first base, or even sitting down for basic postgame interviews with the team’s own RSN. Sure, he’s always been more introverted, never the loud voice in the clubhouse.
But fans don’t really care if players talk to the media. Teams do.
It’ll be interesting to see if Devers gives any postgame interviews to NBC Sports Bay Area during this weekend’s series against the Red Sox. If he actually does, perhaps fans will start to care a little more.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.