The San Francisco Giants knew they were paying a steep price for Rafael Devers. That was the deal from the start. To land one of the biggest names moved in 2025, they had to send real talent back to Boston, and the return package already looks like it could sting.
Devers arrived in the first major in-season trade of the year after growing frustrated in Boston, where he was moved from third base to designated hitter and then asked to handle first base. San Francisco wanted the bat enough to take on his massive contract, even with the understanding that first base was still part of the job. And while Devers has delivered back-to-back 30-home run seasons for the Giants, the players shipped out in the deal are starting to make the aftermath a lot more complicated.
Kyle Harrison is the first name that jumps out. Boston sent him to Milwaukee in February, and the Brewers found something the Giants never quite did.
Harrison put together an 11-5 record with a 4.20 ERA in 28 appearances, 24 of them starts, and now he and Milwaukee are headed to the World Series. Game 1 is Friday night.
That’s a pretty sharp turn from trade piece to possible champion.
Jordan Hicks followed a different path, but one that also reflects well on the teams that moved him away from San Francisco. The Giants had invested heavily in Hicks before the 2024 season, hoping to transform the reliever into a starter.
That never really took hold, and San Francisco was more than willing to include him in the Devers deal and shed the salary. Boston didn’t hold onto him for long either, sending him to the Chicago White Sox.
What looked like a rough landing spot turned into a reset. Hicks went back to full-time relief work and posted a 3-2 record with a 3.94 ERA in 53 games, far better than he ever pitched for the Giants.
Then there’s James Tibbs III, and this is the one that can really linger. San Francisco used a first-round pick on him in the 2024 MLB draft, so moving him for Devers was the kind of price teams pay for a star.
But six weeks later, Boston shipped Tibbs to the Los Angeles Dodgers. That alone adds another layer to the deal, and Tibbs has done nothing to quiet the noise.
At Triple-A Oklahoma City in 2025, he hit .287/.409/.532 with 30 home runs and 107 RBI, putting him right on the doorstep of the majors.
That’s how the Giants end up with a trade that still brought in Devers, still brought in his power, and still leaves a trail of second thoughts. When the players you gave up end up in the World Series, rediscovering themselves, or on the verge of becoming a problem for another contender, the regret doesn’t disappear just because your slugger keeps mashing.
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