Even though they were one of the most aggressive teams in the MLB offseason, the Boston Red Sox sit dead last in the American League East. Yes, even below the ever-struggling Baltimore Orioles.
Thus far, Alex Cora’s team boasts a 10-19 record, losing five games in a row. Their offense has been dormant, to say the least, and it feels like they should be due for a major shakeup in the lineup.
Moreover, Trevor Story’s first year at Fenway Park has been nothing short of a nightmare. He’s batting .194 with a .276 OBP, .269 SLG, and .545 OPS. He’s struck out in 33% of his at-bats and has failed to homer across 105 plate appearances.
MLB News: Red Sox Won’t Move Story Down In The Lineup
The fans have already lost their patience with their second baseman. They booed him again after striking out three times in four at-bats on Sunday. However, Cora won’t consider moving him down in the lineup as a part of his upcoming adjustments:
“We’ll see where we’re at Tuesday,” Cora said. “We have to make adjustments. It’s an adjustment game. Probably I’ll shave Monday. It might be an adjustment. I don’t think hitting or anything is about shaving but hey, people are asking for that. No but, we have to work. Whatever lineup we have Tuesday is the lineup we’re going to have Tuesday and we have to be better.”
“If you start talking about certain guys, I don’t know,” the skipper added. “As an offense, we’re not doing too much. When he was hitting sixth or he’s leading off, we haven’t done much. We cannot look at one guy to get the offense going. And he knows he’s working. We know he’s going to be better. Right now it doesn’t look great but we trust the player.”
While some offensive regression was expected after leaving Coors Field, this has been way too much. Then again, Story is too good not to turn things around, but maybe being second in the lineup isn’t doing him any favors right now.