Story plays from position of strength at shortstop
BOSTON — Trevor Story is back on his playground. Shortstop, that is.
There’s a level of freedom Story possesses that can only be seen when he plays his usual position. It translates to the rest of his game, be it at the plate or on the bases. Playing shortstop affirms that he is — or reminds him to be — the athlete that made him one of the best at his position in the majors with the Rockies.
After more than a year of being away from where he made his name as a result of Xander Bogaerts’s occupancy last season, when he shifted to second base for his first year with the Red Sox, and while recovering from elbow surgery this season, Story knows shortstop is where you will see the best version of him.
“It’s fun, man,” Story said Sunday at Fenway Park before the Sox completed a series victory against the Tigers. “I miss playing over there. It feels like home for me. Definitely my most natural position and it just feels good to be back on the left side playing shortstop. I was excited about the return and, yeah, it’s been everything I remember.”
In the eighth inning Sunday and with the Sox leading by three runs, Detroit’s Riley Greene hit a sinking liner to Rob Refsnyder in left field. Refsnyder dived, but to no avail, and the ball rolled to the warning track. Greene, inexplicably, got greedy and attempted to turn a double into a triple. Refsnyder gathered the ball, tossing it toward Luis Urias at third base. But the throw was off line and drifted toward the shortstop area. Story, lined up as the cutoff man, noticed and cut the ball instead of letting it go all the way through. Seemingly all in one motion, Story slightly jumped in order to make the catch and quickly delivered a throw to Urias, who made a stellar behind-the-back tag on Greene.
It was the latest reminder of the ability and athleticism that could make Story a key piece to the Sox’ postseason hopes.
For Story, he wants to play offense on defense. Everything near him is his. He’s going to get it. He takes pride in making his opponent miserable by taking hits away — or, in the case of Greene, nabbing a player on the bases trying to take an extra bag.
“Playing defense in general is just fun for me,” Story said. “Just trying to take hits away, and try to make plays for our pitchers. I think that’s the biggest thing that kind of gets me going is helping out our pitchers. When that ball is on the ground, we feel like we should just turn it into an out. So that’s really our mind-set, and we’re pretty aggressive about it. So that’s the way I like to think about it.”
Story finished the contest 4 for 4 with three doubles and two stolen bases. His weapons were all on display.