How much did Rafael Devers get in his contract extension?
Just two days after avoiding contract arbitration, Rafael Devers and the Boston Red Sox come to terms on a massive deal that will see him stay in Fenway.
Only two days after Rafael Devers and the Boston Red Sox agreed a one-year, $17.5 million deal, avoiding contract arbitration, the two parties have now reportedly come to a final number. As suggested by most of the press, the arbitration avoidance was not so much a smoke screen as it was a ploy to buy time.
The two-time All-Star Dominican third baseman was earmarked as a target by the organization as the Red Sox’s awful 2022 season wound down. Their focus on keeping Devers in house was a key factor in Boston’s inability to hang onto Xander Bogaerts, with deep pockets not quite deep enough to buy both players.
The new deal that has been hammered out will see Devers play in Fenway for the rest of his career, and is worth $331 million over its 11-year lifespan, running through his 37th birthday.
Devers’ contract extension is now the longest-term commitment made by Chaim Bloom, displacing the five-year, $90m deal signed by Japanese star Masataka Yoshida just two weeks ago.
After a run of losing All-Star players to free agency, Boston has come under fire from their fanbase for not being aggressive enough in negotiations, allowing Mookie Betts and Bogaerts to slip through their fingers. It seems that with Devers, they may have reached a red line that simply could not be allowed to get away.
With a slash line of .295/.358/.521 and 27 home runs in 2022, Devers has a potent bat from the left side that is perfectly suited to Fenway, banging in 88 RBIs despite Boston’s dismal last-place finish.
A home-grown talent, Devers has never played for anyone else in the big leagues. Now, Chaim Bloom and the Red Sox front office have made sure that he never will.