BOSTON — Four hours before first pitch, Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora added a surprising detail to his daily injury update summary: Shortstop Trevor Story is scheduled to take batting practice on the field on Monday.
Although Story has made progress in rehab for his broken left shoulder over the past few weeks, this was a significant step forward that Story and Cora did not expect.
“This is a huge step,” Cora said. “Now that we’re here, I’m confident he’ll be there.”
Among the many questions, however, is whether Story’s return will matter as the Red Sox battle for playoff spots over the next 48 games.
On Friday, a 3-1 series lead turned into a tough 8-4 loss to the Houston Astros on a night when the Red Sox got off to a strong start by Tanner Houck only to watch the bullpen bleed them dry. The Red Sox are 1 1/2 games behind Kansas City for the third wild-card spot in the American League.
In three starts since the break, Houck had allowed four, three and six earned runs. On Friday, he held Houston to one run on four hits and three walks, striking out one and forcing 12 groundball outs with his trademark sinker. In an inning that might have gone awry in previous games, Houck escaped the fifth inning and left the bases loaded after forcing a groundout to short.
“I think I adjusted really well in the game,” Houck said. “I struggled a little bit with control at the beginning, but I eventually recovered and made the shots when I needed to. All in all, a great game to look back on, learn from and continue to grow.”
But after a laborious 82 pitches on a humid night, Cora turned to newcomer Lucas Sims, who blew the lead. Sims had made three scoreless appearances for the Red Sox since joining the team at the trade deadline last week, but Friday was different and boded badly from the start, as Jake Meyers hit a leadoff triple. Two batters later, Jose Altuve hit a two-run homer to tie the score.
ALTUVE PUTS THE END!!#RELENTLESS pic.twitter.com/2iW8g0v4dz
— Houston Astros (@astros) 10 August 2024
Cora turned to Zack Kelly, but the Astros scored two more runs to take the lead before adding three more in the ninth inning.
“We’ve been talking about this since the trade deadline, right?” Cora said. “We’re getting healthy and we have good arms. That didn’t happen today. I’ve always said this is a fastbreak offense (for Houston). When they get going, they get going.”
The Red Sox caught up in the seventh inning when Cora sent three pinch hitters to the plate in a span of four batters. An error by home plate umpire Mark Carlson led to a strikeout by Rob Refsnyder, spoiling a chance. Enmanuel Valdez managed a walk to load the bases for Rafael Devers, but Devers managed a strikeout to end the inning.
The Red Sox have shown fighting spirit all season and are still within reach of a wild-card spot, but the next 2 1/2 weeks will be crucial to their playoff hopes. As of Friday, the Red Sox have played 13 of their next 16 games against teams that currently hold a postseason spot. Next week’s three games against the Texas Rangers (winners of last year’s World Series) are the exception.
Against this backdrop, Story is in a race against time. When the 31-year-old broke his shoulder, which he is normally unable to throw, in the eighth game of the season in early April, it was assumed that he would return in 2025 given the severity of the surgery.
But Story spent the next three months rehabbing in Southern California at Elite OrthoSport, where he underwent surgery, and came back in better shape than expected. He joined the team shortly after the All-Star break for its trip to Los Angeles and then Colorado. He has been with the club ever since.
Trevor Story talks to Colorado Rockies fans at Coors Field in late July. (Isaiah J. Downing / USA Today)
“Honestly, I didn’t expect it to go this well,” Story said Friday. “I just know how bad it was at the beginning of the rehab process. But I really believe my body has turned around, and so has my mind. I think my mind trusts my body more now than ever.”
Story said he took his first swing in Colorado and found he felt better than expected, making a return late in the season possible.
“I always hoped it was more than a ‘maybe,'” Story said. “I think it’s kind of a reality now. The last two weeks, the swings have been really good. Really no hesitation or holding back in the swing. And I think that’s why we’re optimistic.”
Cora would not put a timeline on how many BP sessions Story would do or when he would begin rehab, but he noted that Story is ready defensively. Preparations are more focused on his swing with the shoulder surgery.
“I don’t want to put pressure on him, but he puts pressure on us and that’s the great thing about it,” Cora said.
“We just worked behind the scenes and kept expectations low,” Story said. “I think it helped us to let the body recover and recover from the beating in the cage. Like I’ve always said, if I get a chance to play, I’ll take it.”
While the news on Story was promising, the Red Sox still have many hurdles to overcome. Triston Casas continues to rehab at Triple-A Worcester, and while he played well last week, the decision on how quickly he feels ready to return is in Casas’ hands, according to Cora. Meanwhile, the Red Sox announced Friday that Cooper Criswell, who was scheduled to start in place of Nick Pivetta on Saturday, has been placed on the COVID-IL. Josh Winckowski is now scheduled to start Saturday as a reliever.
The team also announced that Brayan Bello will be absent for a few days due to the birth of his child, but is expected to be back for his start on Monday. To fill Criswell and Bello’s spots, the Red Sox have brought back Cam Booser and Brad Keller from Triple-A Worcester.
Cam Booser allowed a double by Yordan Alvarez that scored Alex Bregman. (Michael Dwyer / Associated Press)
There’s plenty of work to be done as the Red Sox try to move up the standings during a difficult stretch of the schedule, and if they can do that, Story could provide a boost for important games at the end of the season.
(Top photo of Lucas Sims reacting after allowing a two-run home run to Jose Altuve, right: Michael Dwyer / Associated Press)
