Why Latest Career Milestone Was ‘Bittersweet’ For Rafael Devers

Red Sox star Rafael Devers joined an exclusive group Saturday afternoon at Yankee Stadium.

Devers logged the 1,000th hit of his MLB career when he laced an RBI single off New York ace Gerrit Cole. The third baseman became only the sixth player in Boston history to accomplish the feat before turning 28 years old, joining Hall of Famers Carl Yastrzemski, Jim Rice, Bobby Doerr and Tris Speaker as well as former teammate Xander Bogaerts.

Unfortunately for Devers, the milestone was met with a disappointing result. Coming off Friday night’s thrilling extra-innings win over the Yankees, the Red Sox were brought back down to Earth with a 14-4 blowout loss at the hands of their fiercest rival.

In turn, Devers came out of Saturday’s contest with mixed emotions.

“You feel happy. You are happy for the accomplishment,” Devers told reporters through translators, per The Boston Globe. “Obviously, it’s a little bit bittersweet because we lost tonight. But yeah, I feel happy to be able to reach that milestone.”

The Red Sox’s loss in the middle game certainly was to no fault of Devers. In addition to his momentous base knock, the two-time All-Star blasted a tape-measure, go-ahead home run off Cole in the fifth frame.

Devers will try to have another productive outing Sunday night when Boston vies for a series win. First pitch from the Bronx is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.