Journey Through The Minors.
Dropping dead-weight and adding sound pieces is precisely what Devers did, and his power has developed along the way. His pro debut in 2014 went about as well as could be hoped. He slashed .322/.404/.506 with seven home runs over 70 games across two levels.
In the winter that followed the 2014 season, Bleacher Report had the hitting phenom ranked 5th overall in the Red Sox system. They tagged his power with a 65 grade and had this to say:
"“Though he’s only 18, Devers is already a physically strong left-handed hitter. His explosive bat speed and huge extension through contact produces plus-plus raw power to all fields—the kind of power that could potentially translate to 25-plus home runs (grade 65 on 20-80 scouting scale) in the major leagues.”"
That prompted a jump to Greenville (A ball) where he played 115 games in 2015. He started the year cold but finished strong ending the season with at .289/.329/.443 with 11 home runs. At just 18 years old, holding his own and making adjustments at that level is impressive in its own right.
The following year he moved to high-A and played for Salem. Over 128 games he had similar results to his Greenville stay slugging 11 home runs and .282/.335/.443. Lewis-Gale Field is known to suppress home run production, so the apparent step back in HR/PA may not tell the whole story. And at 19 he was once again very young for the league.
While his run in Salem was encouraging, he had yet to break out as a prospect really. The in-game power was shown in flashes, but the question of whether or not he could get to his plus raw power in games was still mostly unanswered — though it wouldn’t go unanswered for long.
Before being called up in late July last year, Devers obliterated AA pitching. He posted a .300/.369/.575 slash line with 18 home runs and a 155 wRC+ over 320 plate appearances. That’s a 34 home run pace and showed the Red Sox enough that they opted not to trade for Todd Frazier.
After a brief stint in AAA Pawtucket where he continued to mash, the long wait at Fenway was finally over.