Someone we’ve discussed at length on Roundtable is Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story, who has a decision to make this offseason as it relates to the remainder of his time in Boston.

Here’s what my colleague Brady Farkas wrote back in early October:

“[Trevor] Story signed a six-year deal before the 2022 season. Though he spent much of the first three years hurt, he rebounded in a big way this season, hitting .263 with 25 home runs, 96 RBIs and 31 stolen bases. He's got two years and $50 million guaranteed on his deal. At 32 years old, does he think he can get one more contract that is bigger than that, or does he want to take the sure money?

Fast forward to the end of October, and we still have no word on Story’s decision as of publishing.

His partner on the left side of the infield in Alex Bregman made his opt-out decision early, choosing to leave $80 million over the next two years on the table and take a stab at free agency for the second straight offseason after only one year in Boston. And while he was a Silver Slugger nominee for AL third basemen, his productivity waned after straining his quad in late May while legging out a single against the Orioles.

Given the season he had and the agent representing him (Scott Boras), Bregman’s opt-out is less than surprising.

Story’s upcoming decision is a lot more complicated.

After signing in Boston ahead of the 2022 season, Story was unable to play over 100 games in a season for the Red Sox until this season due to injury. A two-time All-Star from his six years in Colorado, Boston fans were only ever treated to samplings of what Story could be if fully healthy. Even with his health intact to start 2025, it looked like the impact of all his injuries over time had officially cooked the 32-year-old, with many in the media calling for him to be designated for assignment in late May.

Then, the story flipped (pun intended).

The shortstop was arguably this team’s MVP, completely turning his season around starting with his team’s series at Milwaukee the final weekend of May. From June 1 onwards, according to StatMuse, Story had a batting average of .287 with 114 hits, 18 home runs, 73 RBIs and 68 runs scored in 102 games. Most impressive of all, he was a perfect 31 for 31 on stolen bases. He finished the season with a WAR of 3.8, the fifth-highest WAR of his career and the highest he’s had since 2021.

What does this all mean for his future? MassLive’s Sean McAdam gave his opinion on the situation on the latest “Fenway Rundown” podcast with his colleague Chris Cotillo.

McAdam: “I'd be surprised if he opts out at this point. The one thing that stops me from being completely confident that [if] he's going to opt out, is that it’s not a good free agent shortstop market. There's not a lot out there.

“There's Bo Bichette, who is a terrific offensive player, but not a very good shortstop, and not anybody that anyone foresees playing shortstop well into his early-to-mid 30s. In fact, his run might be almost over…The feeling is he probably can't play shortstop much longer. He's a terrific offensive player. We know that, and there'll be a market for him. But beyond that, there's Ha-Seong Kim, who's out there as a free agent shortstop, but not on the level of Bichette, certainly.

“So I think this is a market that maybe Story could take advantage of, but I'm more in line with you, that he likes it here, that he wants to kind of see this through and win here. And while he might be able to get a short-term deal that would come close or maybe eclipse what he's got coming, and that would have to be better than $27.5 million each over the next two years. I don't see him opting out.”

We’ll continue to monitor this situation as it develops here at Roundtable.

Tom Carroll is a contributor for Roundtable, with boots-on-the-ground coverage of all things Boston sports. He's a senior digital content producer for WEEI.com, and a native of Lincoln, RI.