When Rafael Devers got off to a rocky start in his first season as the Boston Red Sox’s designated hitter, he was encouraged to turn to David Ortiz for guidance.
Ortiz, the former face of the franchise, has long been a mentor to Devers — a fellow Dominican — sharing his insight throughout Devers’ MLB journey and offering support during his move to DH in spring training.
More recently, Devers was asked to play first base following Triston Casas’ season-ending knee injury, a request he firmly declined. The situation escalated when Red Sox principal owner John Henry personally flew to Kansas City to speak with Devers. Once again, Ortiz stepped in to offer advice.
“When you’re the leader on the team — the guy the organization is depending on — sometimes you have to set your ego aside,” Ortiz said in Spanish during a May 12 interview with New York’s Mega 97.9 radio station.
Red Sox legend David Ortiz advises Rafael Devers to do what’s best for Boston in first base debate
Ortiz once again emphasized the importance of Devers setting aside his ego for the good of the team, this time in response to Devers’ initial refusal to move to third base to make room for Alex Bregman on the roster. Although Devers eventually agreed to shift to designated hitter, the front office’s latest request for him to return to the field feels more like a last-ditch effort—especially given the convincing it took to get him off the field in the first place.
Regardless of how the situation appears, Ortiz remains the ideal voice of reason. While he’s most celebrated as the Red Sox’s iconic DH, he did appear at first base 278 times during his Hall of Fame career. Though he wasn’t flawless—committing 22 errors—Ortiz is remembered for his bat, not his glove.
Devers has a legitimate gripe with how the front office handled both the Bregman signing and his initial position change; more transparency from Craig Breslow and the leadership group might have eased the transition. Still, Devers had previously urged the team to improve the roster around him, and the signing of Bregman was a direct response to that request.
Many around the league expect Devers will eventually begin working out at first base, which would benefit the Red Sox by freeing up the DH spot for Masataka Yoshida and giving the team more flexibility to call up outfield prospect Roman Anthony. Devers already made one sacrifice for the team this year by becoming the DH—now, with encouragement from Ortiz and others, the hope is he’ll do it again.
