Until last year, Xander Bogarts, who had been in charge of the ‘main shortstop’, left the team, and Trevor Story received elbow surgery. The Boston Red Sox shortstop’s troubles inevitably deepen.
‘MLB.com’ reported on the 11th (Korean time), “Boston Red Sox Trevor Story has undergone right elbow surgery.” Story’s surgery made it impossible for him to leave early in the season and participate in the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC).
According to ‘MLB.com’, Story underwent right elbow medial collateral ligament (UCL) surgery on the same day. The UCL is a part of Tommy John surgery, but it is said that Story’s surgery can recover faster than Tommy John surgery.
In the case of Tommy John surgery, it takes more than six months to return, but Story’s surgery is expected to take four to six months. ESPN’s Jeff Passan described it as “modified Tommy John surgery”. However, Boston has not said anything about when the story will return.
For Boston, it’s super-awesome. Boston left a huge void at the shortstop position this winter when Xander Bogarts signed an 11-year, $280 million, mega contract with the San Diego Padres. Story was the first option to fill the void of Bogarts as a resource who served as a shortstop before moving to Boston, but was forced to miss early in the season as he underwent elbow surgery.
After Bogarts’ transfer, local media in Boston have been concerned about the absence of a shortstop. In the process, he argued several times that Kim Ha-seong should be recruited through trade. You can still find a shortstop in the internal resources, free agent market, but so far Boston hasn’t made a big move.
“MLB.com” noted that “Kike Hernandez and Cristian Arroyo remain options to replace them, but Hernandez’s absence is felt in the outfield, and Arroyo has only appeared in 17 games as a starting shortstop.” .
Boston’s interest in Kim Ha-seong is expected to grow as Story rises to the operating table. It remains to be seen how Boston can fill the shortstop void.