The Boston Red Sox are closing in on a difficult decision. When should they bring shortstop Trevor Story back to the MLB team, and whose spot is he going to take?
Story himself isn’t making things easy. He’s struggled mightily during his rehab stint, making it seem like he’s still a ways away from being ready to go. In his latest outing on Wednesday with the Triple-A team, Story went 0-for-4 with 3 strikeouts.
This came after he shared that he feels like he’s improving. It’s just a matter of getting his timing down.
“Overall, feeling really good… I’m on [time with] the barrel, just a touch off [on squaring pitches]. [It’s] to be expected,” Story said. “I think more than the results, it’s more about how I’m feeling and kind of dictating the at-bat. And I’m in a good spot there. So, next day or two, hit some barrels and feel good about [returning].”
That’s the latest in a long series of struggles at the Triple-A level during Story’s rehab. He’s now just 4 for 29 at the plate, with 10 strikeouts and 1 walk. He also still doesn’t have an extra-base hit. So, it’s not a surprise that fans are concerned he has more issues to deal with than timing. They’re concerned he could become a liability in the Red Sox lineup.
Story hasn’t played for the Red Sox since May 14th, needing sports hernia surgery. At the time, he was hitting just .206 with a .244 OBP, .303 slugging percentage, and .547 OPS.
The Boston Red Sox Might Need to Send Someone Down for Trevor StoryGettyTrevor Story #10 of the Boston Red Sox
Since Trevor Story went down with his injury, the Boston Red Sox have a 55-35 record. That’s helped them turn their season completely around and put them in the Wild Card. It’s also been something they’ve been able to do without a consistent option at shortstop.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who is now injured, and Marcelo Mayer, who was injured and traded to the San Francisco Giants, both had their time at shortstop. Lately, Andruw Monasterio has largely filled the role, while middle infielders Nick Sogard and Anthony Seigler have both also proven to be capable.
“Those guys have played really well, and did their job at a really high level,” Story said. “It’s given us a little bit of a cushion to, if I don’t feel 100 percent sharp, it’s okay to take a couple extra and really make sure that the body feels good. And I feel like I owe it to the team, owe it to myself, everybody involved with this thing to come back and be the best version of myself.”
The Red Sox haven’t seemed overly eager to make a move to send down any of their key pieces. After all, it’s these lesser-known names who have proven to be key to turning their season around. Still, Story may press them to make a decision to either send down or potentially even DFA a player to make space.
Of course, another option is to wait for the rosters to expand before recalling Story to the Red Sox. However, that isn’t until September 1st. So, Story would then miss a vital series in The Bronx against the New York Yankees this weekend to do so.
Red Sox Manager Chad Tracy Avoided Setting a Timeline for Trevor StoryGettyBoston Red Sox SS Trevor Story
Unsurprisingly, interim Red Sox manager Chad Tracy is getting asked about when players like Trevor Story are going to return all the time. In particular, with that Yankees series set to begin on Friday. However, when asked prior to Wednesday’s game, Tracy was evasive.
“Between that and figuring out if one of them is coming, two of them and figuring out moves, we have the benefit of an off day to try to figure that out,” Tracy said.
Story’s 0-for-4 with 3 strikeouts doesn’t seem like it helped the Red Sox feel confident that he’s ready. At the same time, Tracy didn’t shut the door on the possibility of making that move on Thursday during the day off.
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