Giants acquire Raphael Devers in a shocking blockbuster trade with the Red Sox

Julian McWilliams of CBS Sports reports that two minor league players are headed to Boston alongside Hicks and Harrison. McWilliams adds that the Giants will absorb the remainder of Devers's contract in its entirety. Murray later identified those two prospects as outfield/first base prospect James Tibbs and right-handed pitching prospect Jose Bello.

It's a stunning move that will have massive implications for both franchises as they both pursue their first playoff appearances since 2021 this year.

The Red Sox, 37-36 after sweeping the division-leading Yankees this weekend, part with a player they signed to be the next face of their franchise just two years ago. The relationship between the two sides broke down quite publicly over the past few months, however.

Devers has long made clear that he wants to play third base on a regular basis, but the Red Sox clearly had other plans this offseason as they sought to add a big right-handed bat to their lineup.

Even if Devers seems ticketed to spend the next eight-plus years as a pricey DH for the Giants, it's difficult to criticize the move from San Francisco's perspective.

After all, the organization's difficulties wooing to offensive talents are well-documented.

Failed attempts to court players like Giancarlo Stanton, Bryce Harper, Carlos Correa, and Aaron Judge to the city over the past decade have created a reputation surrounding the club that they struggle to attract top offensive talents.

While recent deals for Chapman and Willy Adames have helped to put that narrative to bed somewhat it's still understandable that president of baseball operations Buster Posey would turn to the trade market to land a middle-of-the-order force rather than pursue a top free agent and risk coming up empty.

That's especially true given that Devers's contract looks fairly reasonable compared to some more recent deals, even for a player with limited defensive value.

Setting aside Juan Soto's $765MM megadeal with the Mets from this past winter, even Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s 14-year, $500MM contract extension with the Blue Jays earlier this season makes Devers's deal look like a steal by comparison.

Do you think the Blue Jays should've pursued Rafael Devers given how team friendly his contract was?

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