BOSTON — All season long Trevor Story’s potential return has loomed as a distant possibility, but now the two-time All-Star is nearing the final phases of his recovery from elbow surgery and may be weeks away from getting back on the field at Fenway Park.
It might even be sooner than that at Polar Park in Worcester or Hadlock Field in Portland, Maine, as Red Sox manager Alex Cora indicated Wednesday that Story could be ready to begin his minor league rehab assignment after the All-Star break.
“Probably, I don’t want to put a timetable, he’s been so good so far, no obstacles, no red flags,” Cora said. “You never know what could happen in the upcoming days leading up to whenever we decide, but so far it’s trending in the right direction, and fast.”
Story has been throwing and taking batting practice at Fenway Park for the past few weeks, and Wednesday he put on a show during the pregame defensive drills, making a series of deep throws to first all the way from shallow left field before turning a series of double plays with Cora.
Cora said afterwards that it was his first time seeing Story really go for it out on the field and that Story’s throws are carrying much better than they did last year. He added they have no concerns about his offensive game, but also that when Story returns it will be as a shortstop and not as a designated hitter.
“He’s in a good spot right now,” Cora said. “Obviously there is a process, there’s a lot of stuff that we have to make sure is OK, but as far as the throwing and obviously the physical part of it, he’s fine.”
Story is nearly six months out from undergoing internal bracing surgery on his right ulnar collateral ligament. The procedure is considered a less drastic alternative to Tommy John surgery and usually has approximately half the recovery time, but the surgery is also relatively new and doesn’t have a long track record to draw from when it comes to position players.
Upon the announcement of his injury the Red Sox sounded a pessimistic tone about Story’s chances of playing in 2023, but the 30-year-old has made fast progress and now looks set to help shore up Boston’s dire shortstop situation right when the club needs him most.
Presuming Story does begin his rehab assignment after the All-Star break and doesn’t experience any setbacks, he would most likely debut with the Portland Sea Dogs, who have a three-game series in Reading, Pennsylvania over the weekend of July 14-16 before returning home to Maine for a week-long homestand against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats.
The Worcester Red Sox are also an option, but they have a series all the way down in Jacksonville before then spending the following week on the road in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Sox considering Turner at second
Triston Casas was not in the lineup Wednesday despite the Texas Rangers starting a right-hander, and Cora said prior to the game that was a consequence of needing to keep the red hot Jarren Duran in the lineup.
Duran, who came into Wednesday 10 of his last 16 (.625) with seven extra-base hits over his last five games, was penciled into the leadoff spot and at left field. To accommodate that and also to keep Adam Duvall at center, Masataka Yoshida was bumped to designated hitter and Justin Turner (7 for 18, two home runs in last four games) played first base, leaving nowhere for the rookie Casas.
That won’t be an option every night, and Cora indicated they’ve considered some drastic alternatives to ensure their best hitters are in the lineup. One of those involves starting Turner at second base.
“He hasn’t played second in a while but we need offense. I know we want defense but I think JT would make the routine plays, he’ll turn double plays, we’ve been talking about different scenarios about how to get (Duran) in the game.”
Though Turner has played the vast majority of his 15 seasons in the majors at third base, he does have experience playing second, with 137 career games at the position. Most of that came early in his career, however, and dating back to 2015 he’s only played in 10 games at second.
Chang, Rodriguez nearing return
Infielder Yu Chang (left hamate fracture) was back in the Red Sox clubhouse on Wednesday after playing nine innings at shortstop with the WooSox the day before, and Cora said he’s no longer experiencing hand soreness and will likely be activated either Thursday or Friday depending on the club’s other roster moves.
Left-hander Joely Rodriguez (left shoulder inflammation) is in a similar boat, and while Cora said he could benefit from another rehab outing, he could be activated in the coming days as well.
Left-hander Richard Bleier (left elbow inflammation) was scheduled to make his second rehab appearance for Worcester on Wednesday, and shortstop Pablo Reyes (abdominal strain) was also in the WooSox lineup.
Left-hander Corey Kluber (right shoulder inflammation) is expected to throw his first bullpen on Friday, and shortstop Adalberto Mondesi (left ACL rehab) still isn’t doing any baseball activities.
The club also announced that right-hander Wyatt Mills underwent successful Tommy John surgery on his right elbow on Wednesday. Mills was acquired this past offseason in exchange for right-hander Jacob Wallace, and he has not pitched this season since being shut down midway through spring training.
Houck enduring unpleasant recovery
Right-hander Tanner Houck experienced one of the scariest injuries you’ll see on a baseball field after he was hit in the face by a line drive back on June 16, suffering a facial fracture and what Cora recently described as a “slight” concussion.
The Red Sox have been tight-lipped on Houck’s status since then beyond that he isn’t close to a return, but Wednesday Cora provided an update that suggests the past few weeks have been deeply unpleasant for the 27-year-old.
“He’s not eating solids yet, only soups, I think he’s lost like seven pounds, but he’s in good spirits,” Cora said. “He’s going to see the doctor tomorrow and after that nutrition is the next step and exercise-wise hopefully he can start getting after it on Friday, but little by little.”
Houck underwent surgery on June 27. He is currently on the 15-day injured list.
