If you had just watched Rafael Devers swing his baseball bat for the first half of September, you would’ve never known he was injured.
He was on an absolute red-hot tear, the kind that makes the San Francisco Giants look smart for having traded for him last season from the Boston Red Sox.
Devers’ bat was never really in question, and it’s clear he’s still one of the planet’s best hitters.
It’s even more impressive when you learn that Devers was hurting the whole time.
Rafael Devers Injury
The Giants placed Devers on the 60-day injured list on Sept. 13 with a core muscle injury.
San Francisco noted that Devers had dealt with the injury for much of the season and simply wanted to keep playing.
Wow. The Giants have placed Rafael Devers was placed on the 60-day IL with a core muscle injury.
Giants say he’s managed this issue for much of the season and chose to keep playing through it. He will visit Dr. William Meyers in Philadelphia on Monday for further evaluation.
— Justice delos Santos (@justdelossantos) September 13, 2026
That makes Devers’ red-hot finish even more extraordinary.
In his last 18 games of the season, Devers blasted 11 home runs and had a 1.403 OPS.
The dude’s core was injured — and the core is quite important to hitting — and he just kept slugging anyway.
Players aren’t supposed to be on fire right before they get shut down for the season, but Devers couldn’t have been much hotter:
oftentimes players’ production tails off if they battle through injury
Rafael Devers hit .377/.476/.928 (1.403 OPS) with 11 HR over his final 18 games before suddenly being sidelined with a season-ending core issue that might require surgery
ridiculouspic.twitter.com/tQn04oe5ci https://t.co/qBXkdvlmGf
— Céspedes Family BBQ (@CespedesBBQ) September 14, 2026
Rafael Devers Shows True Colors
The other piece of this Devers news that feels so notable is that it flies in the face of many of the beliefs about him that have emerged in the last year-plus.
Yeah, he did make it difficult on the Red Sox once they got Alex Bregman to play third base. It’s probably not a situation that was handled perfectly by everyone, but it also colored an impression of Devers as a guy who is a tough fit for a roster.
The reality has always seemed since Devers arrived as a baby-faced slugger that he just wanted to hit, hit and hit some more — and that’s something he does better than almost anyone on the planet.
The Giants’ season was long since a goner. Devers could’ve shut it down whenever. He chose to keep playing, and keep shining, not because anything was on the line but because he wanted to play well for himself and his teammates and the fans.
Devers’ contract means he has a long future still to come in San Francisco. This stretch suggests he’s up for the challenge of whatever comes next with this franchise.
Giants’ Rafael Devers Dunked on Injury Trend