Rafael Devers is understandably frustrated. The Red Sox entered Wednesday night having lost four straight games and nine of their last 12. They remained 4 1/2 games back in the Wild Card race, unable to make up ground on the similarly struggling Twins and Royals. Devers himself is mired in a 1-for-21 slump on Boston’s current road trip. He is playing through a banged-up shoulder.
After Tuesday’s 7-2 loss to the Mets in New York, Devers’ frustration spilled over into a postgame media availability that never was. According to reporters who were on the scene, Devers was informed by team staff that the media wanted to talk to him, but he instead made them wait for an hour and then left without speaking.
While Devers is not required to talk to media, and many fans won’t care that he blew them off, it is nonetheless not a great look for the team’s highest-paid player and arguably the face of the team, whether he wants that title or not.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora addressed the incident Wednesday during his weekly appearance on The WEEI Afternoon Show with Andy Hart and Christian Arcand.
“I don’t think it’s an issue,” Cora said when asked if it was a problem that Devers wasn’t more of a team spokesman-type leader. “We all talked about this the last few years. I think he made some strides throughout the year. He made some comments in spring training. He sat there on that bench for like 20 minutes talking about the organization and a few things. People like it or not, he was there. And throughout the years, there’s been stretches that he’s been available to the media. Sometimes he’s not.
“He’s not comfortable with it yet. I think little by little … obviously the language thing comes into play. He’s been better about that. I understand that the media has a job and I understand that us as members of the organization, we’re the spokesmen. We’re telling the story, and the fanbase likes to hear the story when we’re doing well, when we’re struggling, when we’re hurt, when we’re not. That’s something we always talk about to the players.
“Yesterday he wasn’t available. I know it became a story. … Raffy, he’s still learning. He’s still kind of like a shy player. Sometimes he hates talking to the media. That’s the bottom line, and yesterday wasn’t a good day for that.”
Cora also addressed Devers’ health, saying that his shoulder is neither getting better nor worse.
“It’s not getting worse,” he said. “This [latest injury] happened in Colorado. He dove for a ball. … Coming out of spring training, he was a little bit banged up. He took care of that and then everything was fine, but this one is a throwing one. It’s the lead shoulder. Like I said, it’s not getting worse, but it’s not getting better. He’s getting treatment. He’s doing everything possible to go out there and perform.”