The Toronto Blue Jays' division rival did the unthinkable on Sunday.
Just as the Blue Jays were licking their wounds from a three-game sweep at the hands of the Philadelphia Phillies, they found out, along with the rest of Major League Baseball, that Rafael Devers had been traded from the Boston Red Sox to the San Francisco Giants.
Devers had 8 1/2 years left on his contract, valued at over $250 million. He was supposed to be the face of the Red Sox's franchise; that contract represented, to a degree, what the Blue Jays' $500 million extension with Vladimir Guerrero meant in terms of committing to keeping stars in town.
But the Blue Jays also seemingly tried to get in on the action, though it ultimately doesn't mean much, since the Giants will add Devers to their starting lineup on Tuesday.
According to a report from MassLive's Sean McAdam, the Blue Jays inquired about trading for Devers in the wake of his public blowup last month following Boston asking him if he would be willing to play first base.
"The trade came out of nowhere and stunned the industry. There was little evidence the Red Sox had been publicly shopping him around to other teams, though industry sources said other clubs had called in recent weeks, believing that the Red Sox would at least listen to offers," McAdam wrote.
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"Among the teams known to have inquired about Devers’ availability were the Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays, though those teams were not as motivated as the Giants."
With Guerrero installed at first, it seems likely Devers would have continued his designated hitter duties on a near-full-time basis in Toronto, with Anthony Santander playing the outfield much more often.
As things stand, though, the Blue Jays have to be stoked that Devers, who batted .307 with 24 career homers in 121 games against them, is no longer in the division.
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