SF Giants are getting what they bargained for with Rafael Devers at first base

The SF Giants have started to give slugger Rafael Devers his first action at first base in the past week. He had some slip-ups last night, but that is to be expected since it is what the Giants bargained for when they traded for him.

In last night's game against the New York Mets, Devers looked less than sharp at first base in his third career start at the position. He bobbled some balls and there were some plays he should have made that he did not.

SF Giants are getting what they bargained for with Rafael Devers at first base

Ultimately, none of the mistakes ended up costing the Giants but they did raise concerns about how viable an option Devers is going to be at this new position.

It is important to keep in mind that this is a brand new position for the left-handed slugger. He was a third baseman for years with the Boston Red Sox, so moving over to the other side of the diamond is naturally going to come with some growing pains.

The Giants knew that they were taking on a lot of risk when they acquired Devers. With Matt Chapman at third base, it was out of the question that Devers would play there. Therefore, the only places to put him were at first base or as the designated hitter in the lineup.

He was exclusively a DH for his first month with the team, but the plan was always to work him in more at first base once he was feeling healthier as he dealt with an injury to his groin and his back.

Having Devers at first base helps out manager Bob Melvin by giving him more flexibility with the lineup. With Devers at first, that frees up the DH spot which can be used on defensively limited players who are more valuable with their bat like Wilmer Flores or Heliot Ramos.

Plus, Devers has spoken about how he likes being able to play in the field during games rather than just serve as DH because he feels more involved in the flow of the game and believes that helps him at the plate.

At the end of the day, Devers was brought in by the Giants because of his bat. He has turned things around in his last seven games, slashing .333/.355/.600 with two home runs and five runs batted in.

In exchange for that kind of offensive production, the Giants always knew they may have to stomach some defensive growing pains at a new position. One hopes with time he will grow more comfortable at first base, but for now the Giants may just have to live with some mistakes since they knew that was what they were signing up for.

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