I am saying that based on:
- last year (94 games)
- THIS year (zero games)
- and that his arm has been deteriorating for many years by all accounts.
He's nearly 31 years old and he has played 94 games in 18 months. None of this is promising for his future ability to stay on the field.
Guys.....counting on Trevor Story to come back and make something of both the Sox' season and his own is utter folly, it would be like counting on Whitlock to stay healthy in the starting rotation. He has done nothing but get hurt since signing here, and he's coming back from a very serious arm injury. If he sees the field at all then all parties should consider it a win. Until then I'd take all reports on his recovery progress with a large grain of salt.
I honestly think that they should write off this season as a lost one for him and just prepare for 2024. And I honestly think they ought to move him to 2B on a permanent basis starting in 2024 and get themselves a real major league SS. That would maximize both the Sox' chances of winning games AND Story's own production and would alleviate any concerns about his arm strength at SS.
OK, just for argument's sake let's not count on him coming back this year...or let's count on him coming back....I don't see where it makes any difference. Boston is going to do what it's going to do based on what
actually develops, not based on our expectations.
The bigger point on the shortstop position, though, is that there's this kid named Mayer, the Sox #1 prospect who's starting to heat up at Portland, and whom we may reasonably expect to land in Boston mid- to late-2024. Boston isn't just going to ignore him and go out and get a "real" MLB shortstop instead, so I don't see where this discussion is going. If anything, Story's (in)ability to come back is going to weigh on the position of 2B next year. If he doesn't heal well, then the Sox will have to decide if they feel comfortable with their current cast of characters at 2B (including Valdez, Yorke, and Reyes), or if they want to get a "real" MLB 2B. I find this issue much more interesting.