Throughout his years with the Red Sox, Trevor Story has been a good find for the team. The shortstop and second baseman contributed immensely for the Red Sox both with the Bat and athleticism in the field. However, in recent times, Story seemed tired with a slowed-down right arm.
As a matter of fact, the shortstop had been throwing three miles slower last year than in 2021- where he threw with a velocity of 79 mph. Some fans speculated that the player was suffering from some arm injury, and as it turns out, they were right.
Earlier Monday, Dr. Keith Meister performed an internal bracing procedure of the ulnar collateral ligament in Story’s right elbow.
Chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said Tuesday in a Zoom session with reporters that Story started having elbow trouble as he increased his throwing intensity around the holiday season.
What did Trevor Story’s 2022 look like?
Furthermore, getting injured is not something new for Trevor; like most other athletes, the Red Sox second baseman, prior to his elbow injury, had suffered a right-hand contusion and a left heel contusion in 2022, limiting him to just 94 games in the season.
Even in those 94 games, the player tried to give his best while representing Boston- he made 53 runs in his 85 hits, batted in 66 runs, walked 32 times, and hit 16 massive home runs. On the other hand, as a shortstop, Story has taken 378 catches, 157 putouts, 215 Assists with just six errors, and 50 double plays, which allowed him to have a fielding percentage of .984 in 2022.
Yet, with the injury in “hand,” there are doubts about whether Trevor Story will return in 2023, says Chaim Bloom. In the zoom meeting, the chief baseball officer spoke in detail about Story.
What did chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom have to say about Trevor Story?
Bloom had a long conversation with the reporters, and while talking about Trevor, the chief baseball officer said,
“We’re not ready to put a timetable on it yet. I certainly would not rule out a return sometime during 2023. But it’s also not something at this stage that we want to bank on. It’ll take how long it takes. We want to make sure he’s 100 percent. But certainly, with this being the internal brace procedure and not a Tommy John [surgery], it does leave the door open for a return this season.”
“Obviously recognizing that his throwing has not been what it was in the past, everything when we did the physical when we signed him looked good and he felt good throughout the season,” Bloom said. “This, what he experienced in this incident, was something new.”
“Until you see how the offseason played out, it was still an open question where we hadn’t set anything in stone, but he was preparing to play shortstop. And for him, that’s something that he was vocal with us about wanting to do,” Bloom added.
“Obviously his hope was that if Xander left, it would be an opportunity that he would get, and that’s where his head was. Understanding he was always going to do whatever we thought was best for the team and that there were certain ways the roster could come out where he’d be our second baseman. But his mindset was to prepare to play shortstop.”
What will happen to the Red Sox?
“It means there’s more to do,” Chaim said. “We already wanted to strengthen the middle of the field obviously, even when Trevor was healthy that was the case. We were fortunate that we had him and Kiké [Hernández] as good options that covered us in a number of different ways. Obviously, Kiké can still do that, but it’s an area that we certainly want and need to add to.”
Chaim then went on to say, “I would expect we’re going to add, Frankly, that was my expectation even before this. Whether that’s through free agency or trade, I don’t know yet what that looks like, who it is.”
Bloom ended the conversation by stating, “Obviously, it’s something we were already actively discussing even before this. And now we’re a man down so we’re going to have to fortify ourselves further. Our expectation was always that in some way, shape, or form we would have outside additions joining our position player group and so that’s still the case.”
Can Trevor recover in time and play in the upcoming season? Stay tuned and find out.
