BOSTON (AP) — Red Sox manager Alex Cora had a sense that Rafael Devers would be sticking around during a high-level, mid-December meeting in the Dominican Republic when the rough terms of a new deal were discussed.
“His eyes got as big as when he sees a fastball right down the middle,” Cora said on Wednesday at a Fenway Park news conference to announce a 10-year deal that will pay Devers $331 million through 2033.
Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom said it was important to sign one of the team’s homegrown stars. But he hadn’t had much luck at that with Mookie Betts or Xander Bogaerts.
That made signing Devers an “urgent priority,” Red Sox Chairman Tom Werner said.
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports