Insider's Update On Red Sox Clubhouse Is Bad News Amid Rafael Devers Saga

The Boston Red Sox have been engulfed in controversy for the past four days, and it's centered around just one of the 26 players on the roster.

Three-time All-Star Rafael Devers was moved from third base to designated hitter this spring, and now, the Red Sox seemingly want him to move again, from DH to first base. Devers unleashed on the team, and specifically chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, for asking him to do so on Thursday.

Everyone's got an opinion on the hot-button topic taking over Red Sox Nation, but the opinions that might matter most, outside of Devers himself and the decision-makers like Breslow, are the other 25 members of the roster.

MassLive's Chris Cotillo had a somewhat ominous update on the subject Sunday night. Evidently, some players are in Devers' corner for not wanting to make the switch, while others think he should be doing anything he can to help the team.

"In the clubhouse in Kansas City, the Red Sox seemed a little (more) chipper than usual," Cotillo wrote. "Players weren’t afraid to speak their minds to reporters, media relations officials, or whoever else was listening. Some players privately said they side with Devers and think the Red Sox are wrong for stringing him along. Others might be side-eying his unwillingness to play first."

Asked to clarify whether he was only suggesting that players could be upset with Devers, Cotillo made it clear that some of those players existed.

"Can confirm there are players in both camps here," Cotillo wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

It's not as though major league teammates need to agree on everything. And an issue this nuanced, which also affects different people on the roster in different ways, can certainly cause reasonable minds to disagree.

However, the longer this plays out, the more room is created for conflict and confusion. Being surrounded by the Devers controversy seemed to galvanize the Red Sox over the weekend in Kansas City, but scrutiny isn't always welcome for an extended period of time.