Fresh off of sweeping the New York Yankees at home, the Boston Red Sox made headlines when they traded away third baseman Rafael Devers — arguably one of their best players over the last decade — to the San Francisco Giants in exchange of pitchers Jordan Hicks and Kyle Harrison, as well as two prospects. And, to say the least, people are shocked.
Granted, Devers being traded away isn’t all that crazy. Despite being one of the team’s most potent bats for 8 years, Devers had recently had a strained relationship with the Red Sox organization following the team’s acquisition of star third baseman Alex Bregman over the winter, which forced him into a designated hitter role — a role Devers was none too pleased about, despite statistically being a defensive liability at the hot corner. After Triston Casas had a season-ending injury, Devers was offered a spot at first base, a spot which Devers refused and only served to frustrate him more. Needless to say, the two parties haven’t been what one would call “harmonious” this season.
After months of speculation, the Devers trade finally happened. And now, the Red Sox are free of his 10-year, $313 million deal. But, after details of the deal emerged, many have said that the Red Sox didn’t get enough value out of the deal and instead made a move simply out of frustration. There is also now the report that Bregman will opt out of his current deal at the end of the season in order to procure a bigger contract now that the money they were paying Devers is now off the books.
So, in the interest of fun, we loaded up MLB The Show 25, started a new Franchise mode save, and saw what offers the game gave us for Devers.
What Do Teams Offer For Rafael Devers In MLB The Show 25?
Immediately upon firing up this new Franchise mode save in MLB The Show 25, I immediately put Devers on the trade block to generate some talk. A week into the season, after nobody had made any actual offers, I went to the Trade Talks screen, selected Devers, and proposed a trade. Unsurprisingly, almost every team made some kind of offer for the slugging third baseman.
In lieu of recent events, I immediately tabbed over to see what the Giants were offering. The trade proposal was like this:
San Francisco Giants Offer
- Willy Adames (84 OVR, SS)
- Sam Huff (69 OVR, C)
- Evan Gates (49 OVR, RP)
Boston Red Sox Offer
- Rafael Devers (86 OVR, 3B)
Overall, the offer itself wasn’t too dissimilar to the deal that the Giants made in real life, by including an MLB-ready player as well as some prospects. However, the value the Sox get in this virtual trade — Adames, a solid player who is proven — is way higher than what they got in real life. At least, according to the game.
Jordan Hicks headlined the real-life deal for the Giants. According to The Show, Hicks isn’t nearly the same caliber player as Devers. And, in all fairness, that’s justified. Thus far in 2025, Hicks has struggled with Giants and had all but lost his spot in the team’s current rotation, instead being used as a bullpen pitcher in his last four appearances. In 13 total appearances and 48.2 innings, Hicks has posted an abysmal 6.47 ERA, 10.2 home runs per 9 innings, and a -1.0 WAR.
Another player included in the trade was pitcher Kyle Harrison, who is still very much an unknown when it comes to his MLB career. A former third-round pick for the Giants, Harrison has only thrown about 183 innings since 2023, posting a 1.0 WAR and 4.48 ERA in that period. He could be a very useful tool for the backend of the rotation, especially with Kutter Crawford and Patrick Sandoval on the mend. But good enough to be included in a trade for one of the league’s best hitters?
Then again, it wasn’t the worst deal I received for Devers.
The Miami Marlins went for the straight-up fleece, offering me a package including right fielder Griffin Conine and starting pitcher Robby Snelling. The White Sox also tried to offer Austin Slater, Jared Shuster, and hot prospect Colton Montgomery.
One of the best deals I got for Devers came from the Kansas City Royals, who offered flame-throwing reliever Lucas Erceg, veteran catcher Salvador Perez, and a perennial minor leaguer in Justin Johnson. Of course, the 34-year-old Salvie is on the older side, but could probably still give me a few years of production. Erceg, 29, is in the midst of his prime and will likely be a fixture of the Boston bullpen for years to come. Johnson is more or less a non-factor, but he’s a warm body.
Now, granted, it’s not like the Sox are struggling for talent in real life. Not only do they have Bregman (for now), as well as hot prospects Marcelo Meyer, Kristian Campbell, and Roman Anthony. But does that excuse selling so low?
