Alex Cora Lauds Leadership Of Red Sox Star Rafael Devers Vs. Cubs

Boston Red Sox star third baseman Rafael Devers kept his offensive tear going in Sunday's lopsided win over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

Devers got an 11-run, 14-hit attack going in the top of the first inning when he smacked a solo shot to the opposite field for his third home run of the series.

But Devers' powerful swing wasn't the only standout moment from the win as Alex Cora saw the face of the franchise make an impact without his bat or glove. Cora lauded Devers -- along with Kiké Hernández -- for their veteran leadership, which the Red Sox manager felt was pivotal to Boston taking two out of three games from Chicago.

"There were two meetings today defensively that they were huge," Cora told reporters as seen on NESN postgame coverage. "Early in the game, (Devers) told (Connor Wong) to go to the mound and talk to Kutter (Crawford) after two walks I think it was."

Cora added: "He's becoming a leader just like Kiké is. That was huge today."

Devers is also leading by example. He took a page out of Jarren Duran's book in the top of the fourth inning when he stretched a single into a double off Cubs starter Jordan Steele.

"He's in a good spot right now," Cora said. "He's running around the way he is right now, hustling. That ground ball to left field, he gets to second trying to score. Playing good defense. This is a guy we committed to and we're very proud of him."

With the departures of Xander Bogaerts and J.D. Martinez this offseason, much was put on Devers to deliver offensively. He hasn't always done that this season as evidenced by missing out on a third straight All-Star Game appearance.

But since returning from the break, Devers is leading the offensive charge as expected and is up to a .261 batting average with 23 home runs and 73 RBIs on the season. And while displaying his leadership skills may surprise Cora from time to time, Devers turning it on at the plate won't catch the skipper off guard.

"He's been dominating the strike zone for a while now," Cora said. "It's just a matter of time. I think if you look at the numbers -- the real numbers -- he's hitting the ball as hard as ever, the batting average of balls in play is way down, so, it's going to turn around. And the way you can actually fix that is hit the ball in the air, hit homers. They're not going to catch it."