Mookie Betts dismisses comparisons to Rafael Devers trade despite obvious reminders of Dodgers deal

In 2018, Mookie Betts and Rafael Devers helped lead the Boston Red Sox to a World Series title over the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

Seven years later, both Betts and Devers are on the west coast thanks to Boston’s stunning trade of Devers to the Giants. And while that surprising trade of Devers harkened back to the Dodgers’ fleece of Betts from the Red Sox, Betts isn’t ready to compare the two deals.

Mookie Betts dismisses comparisons to Rafael Devers trade despite obvious reminders of Dodgers deal

On Sunday, news broke of Devers’ trade to the Giants minutes before San Francisco was set to take on Betts’ Dodgers on Sunday Night Baseball, and he was asked about the trade after the game. 

“I just thought it was crazy,” Betts said, per The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya. “Nothing really to say, it’s just crazy.”

In 2020, Betts was sent to the Dodgers in exchange for Alex Verdugo, Connor Wong and Jeter Downs in a stunning trade ahead of spring training. The Dodgers then inked Betts to a 12-year, $365 million extension, and went on to win the World Series in the truncated 2020 season. 

The trade has only gotten better for the Dodgers since then, as only one of the three players Boston received in its return for Betts is still on its roster (Wong). Verdugo had four okay seasons with the Red Sox before being traded to the Yankees, while Downs only ended up playing in 14 games for Boston and is currently playing in Japan. 

It didn’t take long for the trade to become one of the best in Dodgers history. The Giants’ trade for Devers could end up falling into the same category. 

Boston’s return from Devers consists of two MLB-ready pitchers in Jordan Hicks and Kyle Harrison (Boston has already announced that Harrison will be in Triple-A), along with two prospects in James Tibbs and Jose Bello.

Hicks is more established than any of the players that Boston got in return for Betts, but it’s still a bit of a weak return for one of the top hitters in all of baseball. 

It also means that Betts will be seeing a lot of Devers from here on out. 

“I mean, they care, they want to win,” Betts said of the Giants, per Ardaya. “Those guys over there are doing a great job of putting a team together and obviously, they want to win.”

This isn’t the first time that Betts will be on the opposite side of a former teammate. Xander Bogaerts helped Betts and Devers win a World Series with Boston in 2018, but he’s faced off against Betts in each of the past three years as a member of the San Diego Padres. 

At one point, all three of them were part of the Red Sox’s core. Now they’re all going to be fighting each other for a postseason spot in the crowded National League West.