Will this be his year?

After two lost seasons, Story needs a fresh start

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Bryce Harper hit the ball hard up the middle, surely a base hit into center field. But watching from the top step of the dugout during a spring training game earlier this month, Red Sox manager Alex Cora wasn’t concerned.

“He’s got this,” Cora said to himself.

Trevor Story ranged to his left from shortstop and stopped the ball well behind second base. He spun and in one smooth motion unleashed a perfect throw to first base to get Harper by a step.

As Cora recounted the play after the game, it was part of a larger point he was making about how many ways he expects Story to have an impact on the Sox this season.

“I think we’re going to see the real Trevor in Boston this year,” Cora said.

That was the player the Sox thought they signed to a six-year, $140 million contract during spring training in 2022. But the last two seasons have been the worst of Story’s career by any statistical measure.

A series of injuries, including a torn right elbow ligament that required surgery, caused Story to miss 187 games. He’s hit .227 with a paltry .685 OPS as a member of the Sox with only 19 home runs in 515 at-bats.

“It’s been mentally draining,” said Story, 31. It goes back to the start of his tenure with the Sox.

In a free agent market crowded with star shortstops then delayed by a lockout as players and owners fought over a new collective bargaining agreement, Story didn’t sign with the Sox until March 23. And it was to play second base, an unfamiliar position.

Story had only a few days with his new team before returning home for the birth of his first

child. He then got off to a slow start at the plate for what proved to be a lastplace team.

When Xander Bogaerts left the Red Sox for the Padres after the season, Story started working out at shortstop and ruptured his elbow. He didn’t return until Aug. 8 and had a .566 OPS over 43 games.

“It’s been tough for a few years,” Story said. “Whether it’s the surgery or the lockout, it wasn’t just a normal season.

“That’s not an excuse because things happen. But this is the first year in a while it’s been a normal offseason that rolls right into spring training. I feel like myself finally.”

What does that mean in 2024? A two-time All-Star with the Rockies, Story was regarded as one of the best shortstops in the game on both sides of the ball.

“The résumé speaks for itself,” said C.J. Cron, Story’s teammate with the Rockies in 2021 and now with the Sox. “He’s got unlimited range and makes throws from pretty much any angle he needs. He’s comfortable going to his right or left.

“Obviously what he did at the plate was special, too. This is a complete player. I think he’s going to bounce back.”

Story’s production at the plate with the Rockies was clearly a function of playing half his games at Coors Field. He had a .995 OPS in 225 home games from 2018-21. It was .761 in 248 road games during those four seasons.

But as a righthanded hitter with power, Story should be able to make good use of the Green Monster.

“I would hate to put numbers on it. But if he gets the ball in the air to the pull side at Fenway, he’ll have some fun this year,” Cora said.

That Story had a 1.000 OPS through 14 games in spring training isn’t necessarily a sign of future success. But what could be is the consistent quality of his at-bats.

“Better and better,” Cora said. “He’s seeing the ball well. Obviously, there are swings and misses and we know that. But he’s in a much better place than two years ago and, obviously, last year. He’s a lot stronger and his mechanics are almost there.”

Cora has been even more impressed at the times Story has not swung.

“His takes are telling me a lot now,” the manager said. “He’s not rushed into his swing. It’s a step in the right direction and he’s working hard on it.”

His impact defensively is more of a given. Story was credited with eight defensive runs saved over 314 innings last season. Only six shortstops in the majors had more and all played at least 584 innings at the position.

For a team that was unreliable defensively for much of last season, Story can make a significant difference.

“It’s something that I’m really excited about. I know we’re going be better,” he said. “I say that because I’m confident in what I can do as a defender.

“I like to always anticipate. Anticipate where this ball might be going [and] if it goes here, I’m going to go there and just share that with the other guys. I can play off my instincts and what my eyes are telling me with every pitch and relay that so we move like a unit.”

The other part of this is personal. Story’s oldest son, Stetson, is 2 and loves baseball. He has a full Red Sox uniform and his father is eager to introduce him to the game from the field level.

“He likes to see me on the highlights,” Story said. “That’s cool for me as his father. That’s something you dream of as a player.”

But those highlights are from the past. Story wants new ones his growing family can see in person. He has gone too long without them.

“In some ways this feels like my first year,” Story said. “Full health, full everything. So I’m excited about that. I know the type of player that I am and it hasn’t shown up on the field the last couple of years due to different things.

“But I’m really excited now. At this level, you can’t play with any type of reservation. You have to go out there and let it rip, man. That’s a hard thing to do.

“But having a clear mind, feeling super healthy, feeling like myself, I’m ready to let it rip.”