Giants New Slugger Struggling in One Key Area This Season

San Francisco Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey knew that his team needed more offense to remain in the playoff race in an incredibly competitive National League.

So, he went out and made an aggressive move, acquiring Rafael Devers from the Boston Red Sox in a shocking blockbuster deal.

Devers is considered by many people to be one of the best pure hitters in the game. A three-time All-Star, he is exactly the kind of bat the Giants were lacking in the middle of their order.

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His presence will help take pressure off their major free agent signing, shortstop Willy Adames, who has yet to find a rhythm with his new team.

Adames, Devers, Heliot Ramos, Jung Hoo Lee, Wilmer Flores and when he is healthy, Matt Chapman, is a formidable group to build a lineup around.

Don’t forget about veteran outfielder Mike Yastzemski, who remains a reliable source of power from the left side of the plate. Dominic Smith and Casey Schmitt have been hot recently as well.

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But, the key to this team reaching the levels they believe capable of is Devers.

He has yet to find his groove with San Francisco, off to a 6-for-27 start with three walks, hitting one home run and one double while knocking in three runs.

Overall, this season, Devers has a .268/.393/.492 slash line with 16 home runs, 19 doubles and 61 RBI, with a National League high 59 walks.

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What makes those numbers all the more impressive is the abysmal start he got off to, not recording a hit through his first 21 at-bats of the campaign while striking out 15 times. 

His batting average was under .200 as recently as April 26, but you wouldn’t know it with how well he has performed since.

Alas, there is one part of his game to keep an eye on moving forward as the Giants battle it out for a playoff spot.

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Devers is currently one of the least clutch players in baseball this season.

As shared by Thomas Nestico on X, San Francisco’s new star has a clutch score of -1.04, which is the 15th worst mark in the MLB currently.