"This is news to me," he wrote as a reply.

Nick Sogard is more than happy to be playing first base for the Red Sox, which he acknowledges wouldn’t necessarily have been the case a few years ago.

Devers is annoyed that the Red Sox asked him to change roles for the second time in four months and seemingly more distressed that it became a national story once he voiced his objection last week.

"His energy is very contagious," said Red Sox first baseman Abraham Toro, who also spent parts of three seasons as Bregman's teammate in Houston. "He's always talking about baseball. Even when the game's over, he's talking about baseball. And it makes you want to get better."