This story was excerpted from Ian Browne’s Red Sox Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
ATLANTA -- As the Red Sox scratched and clawed their way to a series victory in Atlanta over the weekend, an important story developed that could help the club emerge from its recent funk.
Trevor Story got his groove back.
When Alex Bregman went down on May 23 with a significant right quad injury that might keep him out for a couple of months, much of Boston’s lineup stalled, despite Rafael Devers continuing to hit at a torrid pace.
Given Story’s track record, and the fact he is a right-handed hitter, the veteran shortstop is one of the best candidates to help replace the sizable production void left by Bregman’s injury.
“We're all going to step up, especially the righties, to try to cover that production,” said Story. “It's going to be tough [to replace Bregman], but I think if we all could just be ourselves, the best version of ourselves, or something close to it, then we'll be in good shape.”
When Story arrived in Atlanta, he was in the throes of a stretch of 31 games and 122 at-bats in which he had a slash line of .131/.191/.164 with just two extra-base hits and 42 strikeouts.
On Friday night, he hammered a two-run homer that traveled a Statcast-projected 431 feet to lead his team to a 5-1 victory.
Then came Saturday, when Story missed a homer to center by a couple of feet. Michael Harris II made a tremendous leaping catch at the wall on that drive, taking away what likely would have been a double.
But on Sunday, Story again took aim at the wall in center, and this time even the gifted Harris couldn’t flag it down. Story’s three-run double in the top of the first staked ace Garrett Crochet to a three-run lead in an eventual 3-1 victory. He added a single and a walk, reaching in three of his four plate appearances.
“It started in Milwaukee,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “He took some walks, hit the ball hard against two lefties and was seeing the ball well. Little by little, you can see him hitting the ball harder. He is kind of picking a side of the plate.”
While hitters sometimes break out of slumps with some significant mechanical adjustments, Story’s key was to simplify his approach.
“Just keeping it real simple,” said Story. “Just trying to be an athlete and let the athlete come out. A lot of times, less is more for me, so trust my eyes. That's the best attribute that I have.”
Story is probably the best all-around athlete on the Red Sox. When his bat plays, he can use his legs on the bases. He remains a rock at shortstop, as evidenced by the diving stop he made to open the ninth inning on Sunday.
The 32-year-old has a chance to have his first healthy season since 2021, when he played 142 games in his final season in Colorado. The Boston years have been filled with health issues for Story, who signed a six-year, $140 million deal in Spring Training of ‘22. But he has a chance to change the narrative this season.
“I'm always looking for little moments to build on,” Story said. “They've been few and far between this year, but hitting the ball like [Friday’s homer], that can go a long way.”