Red Sox’s Trevor Story Emotionally Reacts To Shoulder Surgery Decision

BOSTON — Trevor Story simply cannot catch a break in his Boston Red Sox career.

After playing in just 137 games between his first two seasons with the Red Sox, Story had a healthy offseason, stepping up as a leader and showing that he was ready to play like the impact infielder Boston signed him to be.

That opportunity got taken away from Story when he injured his shoulder Friday night against the Angels. After being placed on the injured list, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow shared Tuesday that Story would likely miss the remainder of the season following surgery.

After the home opener for the Red Sox, Story fought through tears to express the frustration of another lost season, something he never went through due to injury with the Colorado Rockies. His emotions showed through his voice of a player who believes his faith will lead him through his latest setback.

“A lot of emotions,” Story told reporters after the Red Sox fell to the Baltimore Orioles in their home opener. “I’m frustrated. I don’t really understand it.”

Story continued: “I knew it was bad in the moment. I heard it come out and I heard some other things too. I had never felt pain like that. You always try to be optimistic that it went out and came back in. You try to make the best out of the situation and other things happen. It was more serious than we had hoped for. Hard to imagine really.”

The 31-year-old made it clear that not being on the field with the Red Sox has taken a toll on him, given his character as a competitor who simply wants the chance to play out his love for the game.

“Missing last season, you feel that,” Story said. “You miss your teammates. You miss playing the game. You just know what it takes. I’ll be all right. … The frustration of battling this injury thing over the last few years, it’s something I hung my hat on in my career is being able to play. That hasn’t been the case the last couple of years. I just love this game, man. I put my heart and soul into it. I just feel bad.”

Story expressed confidence in his ability to rehab, echoing Breslow’s sentiment that full recovery to play again is expected through surgery. For now, Story looks to stay mentally engaged around his Red Sox teammates.

“I’ll find the strength to do it again.” Story said. “I did it last year. I’ve done it recently. Missing time is never easy. I don’t want people to feel sorry for me. It’s part of the game. You don’t have to look far in this clubhouse to realize the perspective.”

That last line came in reference to teammate Liam Hendriks, who beat cancer and currently is rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, hoping to continue his career after signing with the Red Sox.

Boston looks to piece together a platoon in Story’s absence with candidates such as David Hamilton and Romy Gonzalez.