The third time was the charm.
After failing to retain two other homegrown superstars in the last three years, the Red Sox finally connected and signed third baseman Rafael Devers to an 11-year, $331-million deal that is easily the largest in franchise history. The deal was first reported by former player Carlos Baerga. According to the New York Post, the deal does not include a no-trade clause.
The previous team record was seven years, $217 million for David Price, a contract signed in December 2015. The contract is the largest ever given to a third baseman in the game, eclipsing the 10-year, $300 million deal given to Manny Machado in 2019. In total value, the deal is more than twice as big as any contract the Red Sox have ever given to a position player, with the previous mark belonging to Manny Ramirez (eight years, $160 million).
The annual average value of $30.09 million for Devers is still slightly below the $31 million for Price. The contract includes a $20 million signing bonus and does not include any opt-outs.
The agreement -- which will require a physical before becoming official -- comes a day after the Red Sox and representatives reached agreement on a one-year deal to avoid arbitration. That one-year contract, worth $17.5 million, will be folded in as part of this long-term deal, keeping Devers with the Red Sox through the 2033 season, at which point he will be 36 years old.
The 11-year length of the deal is easily the longest in franchise history, surpassing the eight-year deal given to Ramirez. Longer deals for superstar players have become a phenomenon in the industry this off-season, with Bogaerts and Trea Turner landing 11-year deals and Carlos Correa given a 12-year deal from the New York Mets, though the latter deal is currently under review after the Mets expressed concern with Correa's medicals.
The Red Sox had failed to get an extension done with Mookie Betts in 2020 and traded him to the Los Angeles Dodgers, along with Price. Last month, the team lost free agent shortstop Xander Bogaerts to the San Diego Padres, falling more than $110 million short of the Padres' offer.
Boston's inability to make even a competitive offer for Bogaerts left most Red Sox fans pessimistic about the chances of retaining Devers.
It's not a stretch to suggest that the franchise's credibility was at stake over the status of Devers. Had he gone into the season unsigned past 2023, trade rumors would have hung over the Sox for the entirety of the season, serving as a giant distraction while the fan base waited for him to be unloaded, or like his friend Bogaerts, headed out the door in free agency.
That 1-2 punch would have combined to make this the worst offseason the Sox had endured since 1980-81, when the club lost both Carlton Fisk and Fred Lynn in salary disputes. Instead, the agreement with Devers changes the narrative completely, and ensures that not only will Devers remain, but also, will become the face of the franchise.
Devers will now be the centerpiece around whom the Red Sox will attempt to reverse a stretch that has seen them finish in last place twice in the last three seasons. The team must still find a middle-of-the-diamond player to play either shortstop, second base or center field in the aftermath of losing Bogaerts. Two players on the current roster -- Trevor Story and Kiké Hernandez are capable of taking over at short, but moving either one will only create a hole at either second (Story) or center (Hernandez).
Still, the Sox have their anchor for the foreseeable future.
In his first five-plus seasons with the Sox, Devers has emerged as one of the game's top sluggers. His breakout season came in 2019, when he amassed 359 total bases, a figure surpassed just 10 times in Red Sox history, a remarkable feat for a player in only his second full major league season. His 90 extra-base hits that season was just two off the franchise record established by Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx in 1938 while his 54 doubles were third-most in team history.
After a regression of sorts in the pandemic-shortened season of 2020, when Devers posted a career-worst OPS of .793, he rebounded in 2021 with a .890 OPS and a career-best 38 homers.
In 2022, Devers seemed poised to top himself in the first half, with a slash line of .324/.379/.602. But a hamstring pull in late July sent him to the IL, and Devers was never the same the rest of the way, unable to generate as much power with his swing. In the final two months, he posted a paltry .384 slugging percentage and managed just five homers over his last 54 games.
The 2022 season saw Devers makes big strides defensively, Previously prone to mental lapses and poorly executed throws, Devers committed just 14 errors, his fewest in a full season, while showing more range and consistency. Not long ago, speculation was that Devers would have to move off third base before long, shifted either to first or DH, but his improvement in 2022 was enough to dismiss that.
Wednesday's agreement also takes considerable heat off chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, who had, until Wednesday, never given out a contract in excess of $140 million. Had Bloom failed to get a deal done with Devers before Opening Day, his own job security would have been subject to debate and the pressure intensified.
Instead, Bloom can now take ownership of a key signing and take a big step toward assembling a playoff-caliber roster for 2023 and beyond.