{"id":13694,"date":"2018-07-01T12:29:41","date_gmt":"2018-07-01T16:29:41","guid":{"rendered":"lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/\/?p=13694"},"modified":"2018-07-01T18:04:01","modified_gmt":"2018-07-01T22:04:01","slug":"dont-give-up-on-rafael-devers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2018\/07\/01\/dont-give-up-on-rafael-devers\/","title":{"rendered":"Don\u2019t Give Up on Rafael Devers"},"content":{"rendered":"

After the call-up of Rafael Devers<\/a> late last season, people were labeling him as the next big Boston Red Sox<\/a> superstar. There were fair expectations, considering his ascension through the minor league system and his sample size against Major League teams. This season\u2026his production has been a little lackluster, but don\u2019t stress just yet! This kid has crazy potential, as we shouldn\u2019t give up on Devers just yet.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t Give Up on Rafael Devers<\/a><\/h2>\n

The talk about giving up on last season\u2019s top prospect is crazy talk. Rafael Devers is just 21 years old! There are many top prospects still in college or in the minors who have yet to make their MLB debut and are older than Devers. Aaron Judge<\/a> is 26 years old and was a rookie just last season. The point is, don\u2019t give up on a youthful player who\u2019s going through growing pains. Devers has tons of untapped potential and a crazy high ceiling.<\/p>\n

If you have any sort of doubt in him, just think of all this trade talk going around. The talks of trading Rafael Devers for Manny Machado<\/a> shows his value, not only to the Sox, but to everyone in the league. Manny Machado is a bonafide superstar and any mention of Devers being the prize of a package return shows his worth and possible future.<\/p>\n

With the bat, his improvement has been clear. A report came out that J.D. Martinez<\/a> saw something Devers could tweak in his swing, and since then, Rafael has improved. Over the last 23 games, Devers is hitting .319 with eight doubles, five home runs, and 18 RBI. Surprisingly, he also has four stolen bases in that timeframe. These numbers may not be indicative of what Devers will do throughout a whole season, but he\u2019s definitely not the .246 hitter he\u2019s been thus far.<\/p>\n

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Rafael Devers has a thing for big homers in the Bronx. #PapaSlam<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/bGZiGwLVQC<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 MLB (@MLB) June 30, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

There will always be growing pains with young players. Many players are still developing in the Minors at this age. Rafael Devers is a stud and will be a star in this league, he just needs a few adjustments. And we just need to be patient. Don\u2019t give up on the man.<\/p>\n

Main Photo:<\/p>\n

Embed from Getty Images<\/a>