No matter what Rafael Devers meant, he said the wrong thing

Rafael Devers is doing what's best for Rafael Devers. And that's a problem.

The Red Sox designated hitter, formerly their third baseman, spoke to reporters Thursday about a conversation he had with Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow about potentially playing first base. Devers speaks Spanish and communicates to the media through a translator, and there was some dispute over what he actually said. Even if the literal words were deciphered, it was up for debate what he actually meant. Nuance can understandably be lost in translation sometimes.

But what's not up for debate is that Devers is not doing what's best for the team. His thoughts on playing first base range somewhere between reluctance and outright refusal. Any comments directed at Breslow were unnecessarily public, regardless.

This isn't about Devers being a great first baseman, or about Breslow being absolved of blame for the Red Sox' roster situation. This is about doing what's best for the ballclub, and Devers, one of the faces of the franchise and highest-paid players, is not 100% willing to do it.

Devers had a chance to rescue his GM from a roster-building mistake and the team from a catastrophic injury to starting first baseman Triston Casas. This was his opportunity to lift the team. Devers would have garnered plenty of sympathy if he simply gave first base an honest try. "Anything to help the team win" was the only right answer, here.

Instead, he chose to be selfish and make an already-bad situation worse. It's an unforced error that has stripped him of all sympathy. His image in Boston has taken an unnecessary hit.

Fortunately for Devers and the Red Sox, the team is coming off two straight wins to get back over .500. Devers went 2-for-3 with a home run in Thursday's 5-0 win over the Rangers. But the Red Sox are still just 20-19, with little signs of actually rising above their middling status. Abraham Toro played first base Thursday night, and went 0-for-4 with a strikeout. That position is on track to be a black hole of production.

That is, unless maybe Devers gives in and does what's best for the name on the front of his jersey. Maybe he does eventually give in, like he did with the transition from third base to DH. Nobody's expecting him to be perfect at first base right away. Just that he'll put aside his personal preferences for the betterment of the team.

For now, he's at least hesitant to do that. And perhaps that is a small indication of why this reloaded Red Sox team continues to underachieve.