Red Sox's Chaim Bloom Wants To Build Around Rafael Devers Long Term

'We hope he's here not just next year but in years to come'

Scott Neville | Oct 6, 2022

Red Sox's Chaim Bloom Wants To Build Around Rafael Devers Long Term /

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Boston Red Sox

It's starting to sound more likely that the Boston Red Sox and third baseman Rafael Devers could come to an agreement on a long-term deal before he hits the open market.

Devers is entering the final year of his deal and Boston will need to back up the brinks truck to retain his services for the long haul.

Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom was asked about possibly trading Devers this offseason in a similar fashion to how he dealt with superstar outfielder Mookie Betts.

"That isn't something on our radar," Bloom told reporters, as seen on NESN's broadcast Thursday. "Number one, first and foremost, he's a guy we want to build around and he's hugely important to what we're doing.

"We hope he's here not just next year but in years to come. And I think we're in a position now, we expect and fully intend to be able to put a really good team on the field that can win next year. That's really important. I don't see how we make life easier for ourselves by him not being a part of that."

Bloom has previously said how he'd be much more likely to extend Devers this time around than Betts a few years back, and has continued the same messaging throughout the season.

Chaim Bloom Explains Why He'd Sign Rafael Devers Over Mookie Betts

The Red Sox are in a positon to win next season and beyond despite their last-place finish in the American League East this season. They have a much stronger farm system, money to spend this offseason and deeper organization depth. All of that building would take a massive step backward with the departure of Devers.

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Published Oct 6, 2022

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu