Rafael Devers Trade Hasn't Worked For San Francisco Giants
Team has posted worst record in baseball since mid-June trade with Red Sox
The San Francisco Giants organization saw 2025 as an opportunity to reassert themselves in the National League West.
They hired Buster Posey as the head of Baseball Operations, with the goal of revamping roster construction and building a more competitive lineup based on contact. Posey immediately made a splash, signing Willy Adames in free agency and adding Justin Verlander, to build around returning players like Matt Chapman, Logan Webb, Heliot Ramos and Jung Hoo Lee.
After a promising start to the 2025 season, Posey made one of the biggest trades in franchise history. When star third baseman Rafael Devers' relationship with the Boston Red Sox soured, Posey pounced. In what amounted to a salary dump for Boston, the Giants acquired the perennial All-Star for Jordan Hicks, James Tibbs III, Kyle Harrison and Jose Bello.
Devers immediately elevated the Giants offense, seemingly eliminating the team's weakest point. On the day the trade was made, the Giants were 41-31, just two games behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers. Set up perfectly for the Giants to make a run to the postseason and challenge for the division, right?
Not exactly.
Jun 20, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants designated hitter Rafael Devers (16) prepares to bat against the Boston Red Sox in the second inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images
Giants Have Collapsed After Adding More Talent
It's a long explanation, but here's the short story: after trading for Rafael Devers, one of the best players in baseball, the Giants have been the worst team in baseball. That's not a misprint. The Giants have been the worst team in baseball since the middle of June.
Worse than the Colorado Rockies, who remain on track to lose over 110 games. Worse than the Minnesota Twins, who sold most of their team at the deadline. Worse than the woeful Washington Nationals. How in the world is that possible?
Despite adding Devers, since June 15th, the Giants have been one of the worst offensive teams in the sport. Per Fangraphs, the team's weighted runs created plus, where 100 is the league average, has been just 93. That's 26th in Major League Baseball, ahead of just the Rockies, Pirates, Reds and Guardians.
Even their pitching, long a strength, has declined precipitously. Their wins above replacement as a staff, is 21st since June 15th. Pitch poorly, hit even worse, you're going to lose a lot of games.
That's not too surprising, but what is surprising is that they've performed that poorly with the talent they have. Lee has fallen off a cliff, hitting .250/.314/.380. Chapman has hit under .200. And importantly, Devers went from having one of the best seasons of his career to hitting just .226/.336/.410 in San Francisco. Catcher Patrick Bailey has been 26% worse than league average on offense.
It's a testament to the importance of depth on the roster, the difficulty in putting together complimentary talent, and the inevitability of regression in sports. For two and a half months, the Giants seemed like they'd turned the corner back towards challenging for the division. Instead, they've fallen to 63-68, 11.5 games out of first, and were all but eliminated from postseason contention in August.
Meanwhile, Boston's turned into a juggernaut, with a five-game lead in securing a postseason berth. Maybe the Red Sox won the Devers trade after all.