Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers is one of the best young talents in Major League Baseball, but where does he stack up among the league's best hitters?
MLB.com created a power ranking of the best hitters in baseball, and gave Devers his due along the way. The Red Sox slugger was listed as the No. 5 hitter in the MLB for good reason.
"Gerrit Cole doesn't have a vote here, but if he did, Devers would probably be even higher," MLB.com published Thursday. "The Yankees ace said he was 'open for suggestions' on how to pitch to Devers after the 25-year-old lit him up for two homers on July 7. But really, there’s no good way to pitch to Devers this year."
Devers is hitting .326 with 50 extra-base hits including 21 home runs, 54 RBIs and a .983 OPS. He leads MLB in hits (111) and total bases (204). He was ranked No. 10 on the previous power ranking but jumped up for his continued success at the plate. The scariest part about Devers' recent surge is that he's not close to 100% healthy. The six-foot, 240-pound masher is dealing with back and hamstring soreness that has caused him to miss stretches of games and hampered his ability on the field.
The only hitters MLB.com ranked higher were Atlanta Braves third baseman Austin Riley, Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto, St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt and Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager. It's clear based on the rankings that the analysis has a heavy recency bias on purpose.
This year's American League All-Star starter has also received high praise from Red Sox legend David Ortiz, who's been banging the drum for Boston to extend Devers and even said having the rising star in the lineup is like Ortiz never left.
