The seeming refusal by San Francisco star Rafael Devers to exit the game for a pinch runner on Sunday night has become yet another flash point in a miserable Giants season, drawing sharp rebukes from several former players on the local and national level.
But on Tuesday night, TBS studio ***** yst and Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martinez offered a different perspective, largely defending Devers, a fellow Dominican star, for what he described as a “miscommunication,” while also acknowledging that Devers can sometimes be in “la-la land” while playing.
“Rafi loves being in the game. As you saw his entire career, he loves being in the game. But at the same time, I think there’s a miscommunication,” Martinez said. “First of all, Devers does not speak well in English. The translators sometimes can probably get the wrong impression from the way he says it. I think Devers did not find the proper words to kind of explain the kind of mess that went on. And that’s where everything was probably confused.”
In a harsh postgame reaction, NBC Sports Bay Area studio ***** yst Rich Aurilia said Devers waving off the pinch runner late in a close game came across even worse considering he does not often speak to media, while host Bonta Hill suggested Devers was upstaging rookie head coach Tony Vitello.
Later, former MLB outfielder Eric Byrnes said on a podcast that Devers’ move was “dogsh*t” and “embarrassing.”
But on Tuesday night, TBS studio ***** yst and Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martinez offered a different perspective, largely defending Devers, a fellow Dominican star, for what he described as a “miscommunication,” while also acknowledging that Devers can sometimes be in “la-la land” while playing.
“Rafi loves being in the game. As you saw his entire career, he loves being in the game. But at the same time, I think there’s a miscommunication,” Martinez said. “First of all, Devers does not speak well in English. The translators sometimes can probably get the wrong impression from the way he says it. I think Devers did not find the proper words to kind of explain the kind of mess that went on. And that’s where everything was probably confused.”
In a harsh postgame reaction, NBC Sports Bay Area studio ***** yst Rich Aurilia said Devers waving off the pinch runner late in a close game came across even worse considering he does not often speak to media, while host Bonta Hill suggested Devers was upstaging rookie head coach Tony Vitello.
Later, former MLB outfielder Eric Byrnes said on a podcast that Devers’ move was “dogsh*t” and “embarrassing.”
2 months ago
