Watch: Rafael Devers hits first career walkoff home run, snaps Red Sox’ 4-game losing skid
Devers’s solo homer in the bottom of the ninth Friday marked his eighth of the season.
It’s hard to believe Rafael Devers had yet to hit a walkoff home run in his eight-year MLB career.
That changed Saturday night against the Braves.
With the game tied 6-6 in the bottom of the ninth inning, Devers stepped up to the plate to lead off the frame. He smacked a hanging curveball by Atlanta’s Pierce Johnson, the fourth pitch of the at-bat. Devers sent the ball into the Red Sox’ bullpen, 402 feet to be exact. He rightfully flipped his bat high into the air and let out a loud scream before rounding the bases.
Watch the clutch hit to give Boston a 7-6 victory:
Saturday’s heroic longball helped snap the Red Sox’ four-game losing skid. Coming off being swept by the Tigers the series prior and getting beaten by old friend Chris Sale 4-2 on Friday, Devers’s sweet swing couldn’t come soon enough for Boston.
It surely felt good for the player, getting mobbed by his teammates in an epic on-field celebration, coming off a hitless night the game before.
Devers’s walkoff bomb completed the Red Sox’ largest comeback of the season. Boston trailed by five runs at times; it wasn’t until the seventh inning that the team began scraping away at the Braves’ lead.
Given starting pitcher Lucas Giolito’s rough outing (four innings, eight hits, six earned runs, two walks, three strikeouts) and coupled with the Red Sox’ quiet offense through the first two-thirds of the contest, it feels miraculous that this Boston team was able to successfully come back.
For Devers, his home run marked the 28-year-old’s eighth of the season. His batting average improved to .284 on the year, and his OPS inched closer to .900 (.896).
Entering Sunday’s matinee rubber match, Devers and Alex Bregman are tied for the most RBI on the club with 34 apiece.
While Devers may not be interested in playing first base at the moment, if he’s producing like he has been lately at designated hitter and single-handedly winning his team games when they direly need them, it’s safe to say he can play wherever he wants.
In fact, dating back to Devers’s meeting with Red Sox ownership in Kansas City last week, he’s been on fire at the plate. According to Red Sox Stats on X, the slugger is slashing .419/.514/.806 since May 9.
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