Trevor Story showcases all-around value to Red Sox in breakout game against Tigers

"It feels good to just be back playing baseball, honestly."

Trevor Story #10 of the Boston Red Sox reacts after hitting a double against the Detroit Tigers during the sixth inning at Fenway Park on August 13, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Brian Fluharty/Getty Images)

By Conor Ryan

August 13, 2023

3 minutes to read

After spending the first four months on the shelf due to major offseason elbow surgery, Trevor Story preached patience as he re-adjusted to pitching at the big-league level.

“There will be some ebbs and flow to it, I think,” Story said last week of his first reps against MLB competition. “But I’m ready to go now — I’m excited.”

Even after a productive rehab assignment with both Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester, Story struggled out of the gate. In his first two games back with Boston, Story went 0-for-8 at the plate with six strikeouts.

Even for All-Star talents like Story, it’s to be expected to struggle early on given such an extended layoff.

But after just two lackluster games, Story has already shaking off the rust.

After his 0-for-8 lull, Story is now a combined 7-for-11 over his last three games, headlined by a 4-for-4 showing during Sunday’s 6-3 win over the Tigers at Fenway Park.

Story stuffed the stat sheet in Boston’s victory, clubbing three doubles, scoring two runs, and also stealing two bases.

Per ESPN Stats & Info, Story is just the third player in Red Sox franchise history to record at least three extra-base hits and steal two bases in a single game. Only John Valentin (June 13, 1995, at Blue Jays) and Dom DiMaggio (April 20, 1941, at Washington Senators) have accomplished the same feat.

“It feels good to just be back playing baseball, honestly,” Story said during Peacock’s broadcast after Boston’s victory. “I missed it for a long time. When you’re not able to, you realize how much you love it.”

“There’s a process and there’s adjustments,” Alex Cora said of Story’s breakthrough game, as transcribed by MassLive.com’s Sean McAdam. “He put some good swings today on fastballs. Even the off-speed pitches that he swung and missed on, there was conviction behind those. It was a good one. And he’s a force running the bases.”

Despite his profile as a power-hitting shortstop, Story is also a poised and opportunistic baserunner. Even with some disappointing returns over an injury-shortened 2022 season, Story was a perfect 17-for-17 on stolen-base attempts in his first campaign with Boston.

He’s already up to three steals in five games this season, helping to manufacture a run on Sunday by swiping two bags in the third inning before coming around to score on an RBI single from Adam Duvall (2-for-4, 4 RBI).

Story’s greatest impact on the 2023 Red Sox might be felt in the field, given the black hole that emerged in the middle of Boston’s infield after he went under the knife.

After a disastrous stint from Kiké Hernandez (15 errors) at short, the Red Sox opted for a carousel of infielders to slot in for reps until Story returned to shore things up. Things can only improve moving forward for a Boston defense that ranks dead-last in fielding percentage (.981).

Crazy play by Story and Urias pic.twitter.com/Fvz8zosIr5
— Red Sox Stats (@redsoxstats) August 13, 2023

Even with his impressive performance on Sunday, Story expects to trudge through his fair share of peaks and valleys in the final stretch of the season.

“Every single day in the big leagues is [a process]” Story told McAdam. “I understand that I missed a lot of time. There’s not much time for grace when it comes to coming here and playing and being right in the middle of a playoff race. Obviously, the results for the first couple of games weren’t very good. But understanding that the process was right, it just takes a little time.”

But as the Red Sox look to make a late push back into the AL Wild-Card standings, Story’s presence in all three facets of the game will be welcomed, even if he continues to preach more patience.