In the wake of the Boston Red Sox dismissing manager Alex Cora and several members of his coaching staff, could one veteran member of the team see his playing time decrease?
The Boston Red Sox shocked the baseball world on Saturday night when they cleaned house on their coaching staff, firing manager Alex Cora along with a number of members of his coaching staff and naming Triple-A Worcester Red Sox manager Chad Tracy the interim manager. It remains to be seen what will change under Tracy's reign as manager, but one thing to keep an eye on is Tracy's usage of veteran shortstop Trevor Story.
Story, who was one of the most vocal members of the team when discussing Cora's firing, was out of the lineup in Sunday afternoon's series finale in Baltimore, a 5-3 Red Sox win. It was the first time in the first 28 games of the year that Story found himself not on the lineup card, but Tracy described Story's absence as "a day to rest." Could Story's usage diminish now that Tracy is in power?
Story has struggled mightily, both in the field and at the plate in 2026; His .198 batting average is the 21st-worst among qualified hitters in baseball, while his wRC+ of 40 ranks sixth-worst. His struggles at the plate are thanks in part to some of the worst swing and miss numbers in the sport; he's chasing pitches at a 44.3% rate, ranking him in the third percentile of the sport, while he's whiffing at a 30.6%, culminating in him striking out 31.1% of the time, good for the 16th-highest strikeout rate in baseball.
According to a new report from CBS Sports' Julian McWilliams, Cora's usage of his 33-year-old shortstop was a point of contention between the former manager and Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow. "There were those in the organization who believed Story was past his prime and no longer capable of being an everyday impact player," writes McWilliams.
One source whom McWilliams spoke to discussed Cora's placement of Story in the two-hole of the batting order as a decision that raised eyebrows in the front office. Story struggled mightily in nine games while batting second in the lineup, hitting just .119 and striking out 40.4% of the time before being moved down by Cora.
Defensively, Story's outs-above-average of -2 ranks in the 13th percentile among shortstops, while defensive runs saved is more favorable at zero. In terms of sheer counting stats, he's already committed four errors, tied for fifth-most in baseball.
With Marcelo Mayer, the presumptive shortstop of the future in Boston, getting most of the reps at second base, could Tracy do something his predecessor was reluctant to do and move Story to second, allowing Mayer to play his natural position?
Story is not unfamiliar to second base; he spent the entire 2022 season at the position, thanks to Xander Bogaerts' presence at short. Ironically, his year at second was the best defensive season of his Red Sox tenure, posting an OAA of 10, third among second basemen, with a DRS of six, ranking him sixth among second basemen (minimum 800 innings).
Whether or not Tracy will move the veteran off his position remains to be seen, but at least for now, Story will remain the team's shortstop. He's back in the Boston lineup on Monday night, batting fifth in the Red Sox series opener against the reigning American League champion Blue Jays. First pitch from Rogers Centre is set for 7:07 p.m. ET.
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