ANAHEIM, California — Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski reiterated throughout the spring and early summer that Rafael Devers would head to Triple-A Pawtucket first, before any thought of a call-up to Boston.
Devers did indeed head to Pawtucket, if only for nine games.
The Red Sox promoted the 20-year-old third baseman on Sunday following a rough offensive weekend series for the Red Sox in Anaheim against a mediocre Angels team.
In an ideal scenario, Dombrowski admitted the club would have kept Devers in Pawtucket longer, but the need for a spark coupled with Devers’ production in Pawtucket made a promotion reality.
Devers is slated to arrive in Seattle on Monday and work out with the team, taking batting practice and getting settled in before a start on Tuesday at third base. Dombrowski said Devers will hit near the bottom of the order.
Last August, just after the trade deadline, the Red Sox promoted Andrew Benintendi straight from Double-A Portland. His debut with the Red Sox came in Seattle, too.
While Benintendi flourished with the Red Sox after his promotion (despite missing a month with a knee injury), fellow top prospect Yoan Moncada, who was called up in early September last season, struggled mightily.
Benintendi hit .295 with an .835 OPS (on-base plus slugging) in 34 games following his debut. Moncada went 4-for-19 and struck out 12 times in eight games.
So what to expect from Devers?
First, there’s the experience factor.
Benintendi, while promoted from Portland, played college ball at Southeastern Conference school Arkansas. Moncada signed with the Red Sox out of Cuba the previous spring and only had one full year of experience playing organized baseball in the United States.
Devers hails from the Dominican Republic, but has been in the Red Sox organization since 2013 when he signed as an amateur free agent. He’s also played third base his entire pro career compared to Moncada, who was awkwardly transitioned to third last season in order to fill the void at the position.
“You’re talking about the individuals that are very different,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said of Moncada and Devers. “We wouldn’t be at this point if it felt like (Devers) wasn’t capable of the challenges here.”
This isn’t to say that Devers won’t struggle, but perhaps he’s more adjusted, a la Benintendi, than Moncada was at this point last season.
Despite Devers being just 20, Dombrowski pointed to his maturity in pulling himself out of a rut last season at High-A Salem.
Devers hit just .195 with a .584 OPS through 47 games at Salem to start the 2016 season. But over the next 50 games, he turned a corner, hitting .338 with a .935 OPS.
The late-season surge earned him a spot in the big league clubhouse during this past spring training and Devers continued to progress. He started the year in Portland and through 77 games this season, hit .300 with a .944 OPS, handling the promotion well. The top prospect was named to the World Futures All-Star team earlier this month and played in the Eastern League (Double-A) All-Star game, just before his promotion to Pawtucket.
With the Boston offense struggling and the trade market looking bleak, Dombrowski decided a week or so in Pawtucket was enough.
“He’s been exposed to a lot,” Dombrowski said. “We were very impressed last year when he was at Salem, he struggled early in the year, fought himself through that. This year at Double-A, he did tremendously. His numbers are as good as anybody at that we’ve had at Double-A in recent time periods. And he’s handled it very well at Triple-A.”
Time will tell if adding Devers to the major-league roster was a savvy move. For now, the Red Sox are hoping he strays more toward what Benintendi did last season following his promotion and less toward Moncada.
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