SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- If you’re looking for the bounce-back candidate of the year for the Red Sox, keep a close eye on left fielder Andrew Benintendi.

Hitting coach Tim Hyers went to St. Louis to visit Benintendi earlier this offseason and loved what he saw.

“I thought Benintendi was in really good shape. We had a good workout and I think there’s some really good things he’s going to be ready for this year,” Hyers said from Boston’s Winter Weekend. “It was nice to see. He had a really good attitude as far as being energetic and ready to go. We’ll go out and see him again before Spring Training, hang out and see some of the things he’s been working on. I was very encouraged.”

Benintendi has gotten leaner after bulking up a bit too much heading into last year, which should make him more athletic again.

“I thought he was in really good shape. Tons of energy. Looking forward to this year,” Hyers said. “He had a good perspective about what he needed to work on moving forward.”

In 2019, Benintendi had a disappointing line of .266/.343/.431 with 13 homers and 68 RBIs. He looked nothing like the force he was when the Red Sox won the World Series the year prior, slashing .290/.366/.465 with 16 homers and 87 RBIs.

“We know what Benintendi is capable of doing,” said Hyers. “If he plays up to that ability, he’s really going to benefit the team because he’s an on-base machine, and when he gets on base, good things happen.”

Devers loses father figure

The departure of Alex Cora will hurt many of Boston’s players, but 22-year-old third baseman Rafael Devers will probably miss him more than anyone.

Cora took a vested interest in developing Devers at a young age, first managing him when he was 21 in 2018 and watching with pride as the third baseman developed into a star last season.

“We’ve been talking.” Devers said from Winter Weekend on Saturday. “I spoke to him yesterday. He’s like a father figure to me, especially in baseball. I’m really sad that he’s not with us, but it is what it is.”

How much did Cora help Devers?

“He was a huge influence, especially for my growth, especially last year,” Devers said. “He’s someone that has so many years of experience and so much knowledge of baseball. He’s someone that I’ve always relied on, but I’ve spoken to him, I’ve spoken to [Xander Bogaerts] as well and other teammates in regards to the situation. It’s sad, but I’ve just got to keep moving forward now.”

Eovaldi healthy, ready to go

After a disappointing 2019 season marred by injuries and inconsistency, righty Nathan Eovaldi is back to full health and ready to roll going into ’20.

“Health-wise, I feel really good,” Eovaldi said. “I’ve been doing a lot of work back home, physical therapy type of stuff trying to get the kinetic chain … and the shoulder is feeling great. Body is feeling great, I’m ready to go.”