SF Giants call upon legendary first baseman to get Rafael Devers up to speed

When the SF Giants pulled off their improbable trade for Boston Red Sox slugger Rafael Devers, one of the biggest questions was whether he would be willing to play first base. He said he's game, so now the Giants have tasked legendary first baseman Will Clark with getting him up to speed.

Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reported on social media that Clark was in attendance before Friday night's game against Boston and that he plans to start work with Devers on Saturday.

SF Giants will have Will Clark work with Rafael Devers at first base

Devers has never appeared in a big league game at first base. He was primarily a third baseman prior to the 2025 season, but once Boston signed Alex Bregman in the offseason he had to transition to being a designated hitter.

Things got messy when Boston sustained an injury at first base and asked Devers to play there which he publicly refused to do. In remarks to the media ahead of Friday night's game against Boston, Devers said he would have been fine with playing first base if Boston had approached him about it as a possibility in spring training. Yet, that is not what happened and now he is a Giant.

The fact that he is willing to play first base with the Giants is great news. Now, the question is whether he can be serviceable defensively for the team at first base. Over his career he graded out as a below-average defender at third base. The value he brings is primarily going to be with the bat, but if he could just be decent at first base that could go a long way towards making things easier for the Giants.

Clark is a great guy to give Devers some guidance at the position. Like Devers, he was a left-handed slugger who was primarily known for what he did with the bat. Yet, he won a Gold Glove Award in his career so he could certainly flash the leather as well.

Ever since Buster Posey became president of baseball operations, we have seen more and more Giants legends come to help players try and figure things out on defense especially if they are learning a new position.

The Giants had several legends help out top prospect Bryce Eldridge at first base in spring training. One of them, J.T. Snow, has not been shy about bringing up his Gold Gloves as of late.

Obviously, what Devers does at the plate is most important. But if Will Clark can get him up to speed as quickly as possible that would be a huge help to the team as a whole.