The Boston Red Sox have re-emerged as a serious postseason candidate this season following their torrid July, and now are expected to buy at the MLB trade deadline.
They’ve already traded for Curtis Mead, but the Red Sox are not done yet. They have their sights set on more infield upgrades, including at shortstop.
Amid their search for a new shortstop, Trevor Story’s status has become muddied. However, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, the Red Sox’s plans for Story are clear: Boston is giving up on the veteran shortstop contributing this season.
Red Sox are ‘giving up’ on Trevor Story amid ardent trade pursuit of shortstop help
“The Boston Red Sox are giving up on the idea that Trevor Story will help them when he returns from the IL and are aggressively trying to acquire a shortstop,” Nightengale reports.
The recent reporting has indicated that the Red Sox have been in pursuit of a new shortstop, so their view of Story could have been roughly guessed in recent days.
But now, Nightengale reporting that the Red Sox are “giving up” on Story is a noteworthy development. It leaves no more room for the $140 million shortstop, currently on the 60-day injured list, to be a factor in the team’s plans.
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Craig Breslow and company are in pursuit of multiple different shortstop options this summer, all of which would be replacing Story, who, before his injury this season, has -0.1 bWAR with a .206 average and a .547 OPS and 55 OPS+.
Some of the players they’ve been connected to recently include Otto Lopez of the Miami Marlins, Zach Neto of the Los Angeles Angels, Jeremy Pena of the Houston Astros, and CJ Abrams of the Washington Nationals.
It’s going to be costly to acquire any of those shortstops, but the Red Sox are willing to swing a big trade this summer, and those four options are atop their list of targets amid their plan to give up on Story being a piece of the team this season.