Rafael Devers’ historically rough start continues, but the Red Sox remain patient

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Over the course of his nine-year career, Rafael Devers has hit the ball well at Camden Yards. Going into Monday’s series opener in Baltimore, Devers carried a .293 BA with an .845 OPS, 20 homers and 29 doubles in 114 games at the Orioles’ home park. Manager Alex Cora hoped coming to the friendly confines in Baltimore, with its left-field wall moved in this offseason, would help Devers break out of a season-opening slump.

Instead, it only got worse.

With three more strikeouts on Monday, Devers is now 0-for-19 with 15 strikeouts, the most strikeouts through the first five games in a season in MLB history.

The Red Sox fell 8-5 to the Orioles, their fourth straight loss. A much-needed off day arrives on Tuesday.

While it’s only been five games, it’s hard to avoid Devers’ historically rough start. He is far from the only hitter struggling early in the season, but he’s also the cog around which the Red Sox offense turns.

The Red Sox did score five runs on Monday. After falling behind 4-0 in the first, the Red Sox pulled within a run in the third when Jarren Duran hit a two-run triple and Kristian Campbell had a run-scoring groundout. A four-run eighth inning by the Orioles put the game out of reach, however, with a ninth-inning comeback falling short. Boston has scored only 16 runs through the first five games. The Red Sox don’t need every hitter clicking at once, but having their best hitter struggling so much has undoubtedly had a trickle down effect on the rest of the lineup.

Despite the results, Devers feels like he’s inching closer to finding his rhythm.

“I felt good today, I felt good in all the at-bats,” he said through translator Carlos Villoria-Benetiz. “Obviously I haven’t been able to hit the ball forward. But I feel good. And I feel like my at-bats are getting better and better.

“Maybe I’m thinking too much on what the pitcher might throw but otherwise I feel very good,” he added.

There have been glimpses of Devers breaking out of the slump. On Monday, he drew a nine-pitch walk, after fouling off four pitches. In his next three at-bats, he struck out on a sinker after five pitches; worked a seven-pitch at-bat in the fifth, but got caught looking on another sinker; and then swung through a changeup in the seventh after eight pitches.

In his final plate appearance with a runner on in the ninth, he saw six more pitches before drawing another walk. Baby steps.

It’s not as if Devers is striking out on three or four pitches every at-bat, but it’s clear his timing is off, particularly because he’s fouling back so many pitches. The fact he’s made contact, albeit on foul balls, is giving Cora hope.

“There were some positives today,” Cora said. “There was one swing in the last at-bat that I was like, ‘OK, we’re getting there.’ The foul ball to left field, he was behind the ball and he actually got the barrel to it. Good at-bat too, he walked. Yeah the strikeouts are up there, but the one thing — we’ll find it mechanically, the good thing is that he’s not chasing pitches. He’s swinging at pitches in the zone. Obviously, the bad thing is he’s swinging and missing at those pitches. But there were some positives, and we just build from that and hopefully like I said yesterday, hopefully Wednesday is the day he gets one. He can breathe and go from there.”

It seems fairly obvious that part of Devers’ struggles are a byproduct of him missing so much time in spring training. He spent the offseason rehabbing his shoulders and didn’t pick up a bat until the start of camp. Even at that he was building up swing repetitions and only appeared in five spring training games, collecting three hits. He had dozens of at-bats in minor-league games and in live batting practice, but those types of at-bats are far from the bright lights and adrenaline of the big-league games, even in spring training.

On Friday, Devers said none of his struggles are about his new role as designated hitter, but having never served as DH on a full-time basis, it would make sense if finding that rhythm and routine while the team is on the field is another part of his slow start.

He admitted he has not talked to David Oritz or J.D. Martinez about how their routines evolved when they transitioned to a full-time DH role.

“I did talk to David a little bit in spring training but not about being a DH,” he said. “I think I’m going to have to take the time to call J.D. and David.”

Devers said his shoulders are healthy now, so an IL trip isn’t likely at this point.

“It’s not the shoulders, it’s not the DH thing, he was very vocal about that a few days ago,” Cora said. “Now it’s a matter of keep working hard. Getting to the point of hitting the ball in front.”

All-Star hitters like Devers don’t all of the sudden forget how to hit, and Devers, in particular, has a history of overcoming bad stretches. In 2021, he had well-documented struggles against fastballs, in particular. It’s been a frustrating start for Devers, but Cora said he’s going to remain in the lineup.

“He will hit, no doubt about it, that’s something we know. It’s just a matter of when,” Cora said. “It’s a small sample size. If this happens in July or August, we’re not even talking about it but it’s early in the season and of course everyone is paying attention to it.”

In the meantime, the Red Sox are forced to live with the uncomfortable reality of their best hitter flailing at the plate while the rest of the lineup tries to pick him up.

“I don’t know how far or close my hits are,” Devers said. “But like I said, I feel comfortable, I know the type of hitter I am and I know the hits will come sooner rather than later.”

— Brittany Ghiroli contributed to this report.

(Photo: Ron Jenkins / Getty Images)

This news was originally published on this post .

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