San Francisco Giants first baseman Rafael Devers claims media members and fans are overreacting to his pinch-run incident in a 2-1 loss to the Miami Marlins on Sunday.
During the ninth inning of the contest, Devers initially refused to let rookie center fielder Jonah Cox pinch-run for him, waving his finger at the dugout and manager Tony Vitello. He then stomped off the field after exiting the game.
Devers expanded on the interaction during a Tuesday news conference before San Francisco’s home game against the Athletics.
Rafael Devers speaks on pinch-run ordeal
“It was a misunderstanding,” Devers said through a translator. “Two days prior to that, I told the manager that I had a problem with my hamstring, and I thought that was the reason he was taking me out of the game … it just got a little blown out of proportion.”
Devers added he apologized to Vitello’s after Sunday’s game, “which was the right thing to do.”