To say Rafael Devers has been on a tear of late would be an understatement.
The Red Sox third baseman went 4-for-4 with three doubles, two runs and an RBI in Boston’s 6-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night. But his success hasn’t just been noticed at the plate. Devers’ defense has vastly improved after beginning the season with several errors at third.
But manager Alex Cora always “knew the talent was there” with the 22-year-old.
“He’s been great. He’s maturing too. He’s not 100 percent, we know that,” Cora said on NESN’s Red Sox postgame coverage. “But he’s able to play and play under control. … You’ve seen him the last few days he’s been under control. Overall, defensively, amazing, he’s been great for us. Offensively, he hit second today and gets on base four times.
“I think the moment is not too big for him. He learned a lot last year … I knew the talent was there. I saw it in ’17. He played that (American League Division Series) playoff series (against the Houston Astros) he was smiling the whole time and were trying to rattle him in Spanish and English and it didn’t matter. He hit that inside-the-park home run against (Ken) Giles and I was like ‘man this kid, he gets it.’ I’m glad that he’s playing for us and he’s doing an outstanding job.”
Devers’ three doubles came close to tying the club record. Brock Holt tallied four two-baggers in 2014.
But for now, Devers and the Red Sox likely will continue to enjoy the success he’s having as he looks to begin the second half of the season right where he left off in the first half.
Here are some other notes from Tuesday’s Red Sox-White Sox game:
— Boston now has won 10 of its last 13 games and officially is halfway through the 2019 season.
“For everything that went wrong in the first half, we got what 44 wins? I do know but I don’t know. I’ll take it. … We got certain goals, we got to finish strong before the All-Star break. … I’ve been saying all along, I feel that we have to be better. Little by little we’re getting there. … We still have to work.”
— Red Sox pitchers combined for 15 strikeouts in the win, with David Price accounting for nine of them.
“He’s been great for us all season,” Cora said of Price on NESN’s Red Sox postgame coverage. “Command was OK … we took care of him this week and now, he’ll pitch again in Toronto. … (He’ll make) two more starts before the All-Star break.”
— Christian Vazquez extended his hitting streak to 11 games.
During the stretch, the catcher is batting .340 with three home runs, a double and eight RBIs.
— Brandon Workman earned his third save of the season with a scoreless ninth inning.
