Red Sox trade Rafael Devers to the Giants in a blockbuster deal

BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Red Sox traded slugger Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants on Sunday in a deal that could shake up pennant races on both coasts.

San Francisco sent right-hander Jordan Hicks, lefty Kyle Harrison, outfield prospect James Tibbs III and minor league righty Jose Bello to Boston for the 28-year-old designated hitter, who had bristled at his demotion from third base this year.

The Giants are two games back of NL West-leading Los Angeles after losing 5-4 to the Dodgers on Sunday night.

Harrison was on his way to the bullpen to warm up for Sunday's start when he was called back to the clubhouse and informed of the trade. Reliever Sean Hjelle was told about 30 minutes before first pitch that he would start.

“Yeah, it was a lot, and it was late, but you know what? This is something we really needed,” Giants manager Bob Melvin said.

“To get a guy like Devers … there’s a lot you have to give up for him, but this fits us perfectly. It’s a power left-handed bat, a guy that can go the other way and hit for power in our ballpark. I mean, it’s tailor-made for us, so kudos to the front office to swing this.”

A three-time All-Star who signed a 10-year, $313.5 million contract with the Red Sox in 2023, Devers is batting .272 with 15 homers and 58 RBIs in 73 games, including a solo shot in Boston’s 2-0 victory over the New York Yankees on Sunday that completed a three-game sweep.

But his relationship with the team began to deteriorate when the team signed Gold Glove third baseman Alex Bregman during spring training and asked Devers to move to DH; he balked before agreeing to the switch. When first baseman Triston Casas sustained a season-ending knee injury, the Red Sox approached Devers about playing the field and he declined, saying the front office “ should do their jobs ” and look for another player.

A day after Devers’ comments to the media about playing first, Red Sox owner John Henry, team president Sam Kennedy and chief baseball officer Craig Breslow flew to Kansas City to meet with Devers and manager Alex Cora.

The situation became more difficult when Bregman sustained what the team called a significant right quadriceps injury on May 23.

“Everybody around the league, I think, was paying attention to that. When any team is having some kind of drama like that, with a player like Devers — he basically was the face of the franchise," San Francisco shortstop Willy Adames said in an on-field interview during the ESPN broadcast.

Buster Posey, a seven-time All-Star who took over as San Francisco’s president of baseball operations in September, said he reached out to Craig Breslow, Boston's chief baseball officer, about two weeks ago. Trade talks picked up momentum over the past few days.

Posey and Melvin declined to address what position Devers would play in San Francisco — "That's a conversation for myself, Bob and Zack (general manager Zack Minasian) to have with him," Posey said — but they are convinced Devers' bat will have a significant impact on a lineup that has produced only 16 homers from the left side this season.

“We’re excited about adding one of the best hitters in all of major league baseball to our lineup,” Posey said. “We're obviously taking on a lot of dollars, but there’s a belief that adding a guy like this puts us in a good position keep winning ballgames, get into the playoffs and try to win a World Series, which is our ultimate goal.”

The Red Sox have won five out of six against the rival Yankees over the last two weekends to improve to 37-36, but they are still fourth in the AL East, 6 1/2 games behind division-leading New York.

Devers was 20 when he made his major league debut with the Red Sox in 2017. He helped the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series and led the team in RBIs for five consecutive seasons from 2020-24. He has finished in the top 20 in voting for AL MVP five times.

The Giants have lacked slugging since Barry Bonds hit 45 homers in 2004; they are the only team in the majors who have not had a batter hit 30 homers since then. Devers has hit at least 30 homers in three different seasons.

“It’s tough losing (Harrison and Hicks) … but we’re getting a guy back who changes the lineup, who’s probably a top-10 hitter in baseball every year,” Giants pitcher Logan Webb said.

“Any time you add a player of that caliber, I think you give yourself a chance every day.
I don’t know where he’s gonna hit, but I don’t think it really matters. The guy’s a stud, plain and simple. I’m excited about it.”

Devers is not the first Red Sox All-Star to be traded away: The team sent Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers before the 2020 season in a salary dump -- just a year after he won the AL MVP award and led Boston to a franchise-record 108 wins and its fourth World Series title since 2004.

But the Devers deal is perhaps most reminiscent of the 2004 midseason shakeup when Boston traded disgruntled shortstop — and fan favorite — Nomar Garciaparra.

The Red Sox went on to win the World Series that year, ending their 86-year championship drought.

The acquisition of Devers is the latest big move by Posey, 38. He signed Justin Verlander to a $15 million, one-year contract in January and Adames to a $182 million, seven-year deal in December.

Harrison, 23, is 9-9 with a 4.48 ERA and 178 strikeouts in 39 games for the Giants over three seasons. Hicks, 28, was 5-12 with a 4.83 ERA and 139 strikeouts in 42 games over two seasons. Tibbs, 22, was the 13th overall pick in last year's draft; he is hitting .246 with 12 homers and 32 RBIs in 57 games for Single-A Eugene of the Northwest League this season. Bello, 20, is 1-0 with a 2.00 ERA in eight games for the Giants' rookie league team in Scottsdale, Arizona.

AP Baseball Writer Janie McCauley, AP Sports Writer Kyle Hightower and AP freelance reporter Mike DiGiovanna contributed to this report.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

San Francisco Giants' Kyle Harrison pitches to a San Diego Padres batter during the first inning of a baseball game Wednesday, June 4, 2025, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

Boston Red Sox designated hitter Rafael Devers, center, takes infield practice with teammates prior to a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park, Wednesday, June 11, 2025, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Boston Red Sox designated hitter Rafael Devers, center, takes infield practice with teammates prior to a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park, Wednesday, June 11, 2025, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Boston Red Sox designated hitter Rafael Devers reacts after striking out as Tampa Bay Rays catcher Danny Jansen looks on during the seventh inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park, Monday, June 9, 2025, in Boston. (AP Photo/Mary Schwalm)

Boston Red Sox's Rafael Devers, right, celebrates with shortstop Trevor Story (10) after hitting a solo home run in the fifth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Sunday, June 15, 2025, in Boston. (AP Photo/Greg M. Cooper)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is meeting with oil executives at the White House on Friday in hopes of securing $100 billion in investments to revive Venezuela’s ability to fully tap into its expansive reserves of petroleum — a plan that rides on their comfort in making commitments in a country plagued by instability, inflation and uncertainty.

Since the U.S. military raid to capture former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, Trump has quickly pivoted to portraying the move as a newfound economic opportunity for the U.S., seizing tankers carrying Venezuelan oil, saying the U.S. is taking over the sales of 30 million to 50 million barrels of previously sanctioned Venezuelan oil and will be controlling sales worldwide indefinitely.

On Friday, U.S. forces seized their fifth tanker over the past month that has been linked to Venezuelan oil. The action reflected the determination of the U.S. to fully control the exporting, refining and production of Venezuelan petroleum, a sign of the Trump administration's plans for ongoing involvement in the sector as it seeks commitments from private companies.

It's all part of a broader push by Trump to keep gasoline prices low. At a time when many Americans are concerned about affordability, the incursion in Venezuela melds Trump’s assertive use of presidential powers with an optical spectacle meant to convince Americans that he can bring down energy prices.

The meeting, set for 2:30 p.m. EST, will be open to the news media, according to an update to the president's daily schedule. “At least 100 Billion Dollars will be invested by BIG OIL, all of whom I will be meeting with today at The White House,” Trump said Friday in a pre-dawn social media post.

Trump is set to meet with executives from 17 oil companies, according to the White House. Among the companies attending are Chevron, which still operates in Venezuela, and ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, which both had oil projects in the country that were lost as part of a 2007 nationalization of private businesses under Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chávez.

The president is meeting with a wide swath of domestic and international companies with interests ranging from construction to the commodity markets. Other companies slated to be at the meeting include Halliburton, Valero, Marathon, Shell, Singapore-based Trafigura, Italy-based Eni and Spain-based Repsol.

Large U.S. oil companies have so far largely refrained from affirming investments in Venezuela as contracts and guarantees need to be in place. Trump has suggested on social media that America would help to backstop any investments.

Venezuela’s oil production has slumped below one million barrels a day. Part of Trump's challenge to turn that around will be to convince oil companies that his administration has a stable relationship with Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez, as well as protections for companies entering the market.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum are slated to attend the oil executives meeting, according to the White House.

Meanwhile, the United States and Venezuelan governments said Friday they were exploring the possibility of r estoring diplomatic relations between the two countries, and that a delegation from the Trump administration arrived to the South American nation on Friday.

The small team of U.S. diplomats and diplomatic security officials traveled to Venezuela to make a preliminary assessment about the potential re-opening of the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, the State Department said in a statement.

Trump also announced on Friday he’d meet with President Gustavo Petro in early February, but called on the Colombian leader to make quick progress on stemming flow of cocaine into the U.S.

Trump, following the ouster of Maduro, had made vague threats to take similar action against Petro. Trump abruptly changed his tone Wednesday about his Colombian counterpart after a friendly phone call in which he invited Petro to visit the White House.

President Donald Trump waves as he walks off stage after speaking to House Republican lawmakers during their annual policy retreat, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)