I do not at all accept the notion that Devers departure doomed the Sox to mediocrity this season. In fact, with him gone and Bregman on the IL, the Sox hitting has picked up. When Bregman returns, it will get better still.
What seems to have helped are the following: Rafaela's hitting has taken off with an OPS of .739 and rising; Story is hitting slightly better; the two rookies, Anthony and Mayer, can hit; the Toro/Gonzalez thing at 1b is working and hitting better than Casas did.
The problem, however, is with the pitching. And after the ASG the Sox play a bunch of tough teams.