Trevor Story to begin rehab assignment Sunday

Story has progressed to taking on-field batting practice and is close to ramping up his running progression, which is the final step prior to getting into rehab contests. The 33-year-old veteran shortstop should make it back to Boston at some point later next month after undergoing sports hernia surgery back in late May.

This is a procedural move to add a 40-man roster spot for Tommy Kahnle. Story’s timeline was listed as 8-12 weeks after he underwent sports hernia surgery in late May and the 60-day IL should not alter that timeline in any respect. v

Story will likely be sidelined until at least late July after undergoing the procedure on May 22. The 33-year-old shortstop was playing through the injury for most of the season, which clearly had a negative impact on his production at the plate. It’ll be Marcelo Mayer and Isiah Kiner-Falefa handling shortstop in his absence until the second half of the year.

Boston’s former top prospect will get his first chance at shortstop later this weekend and figures to get an extended run at the position with Trevor Story on the injured list recovering from sports hernia surgery. Ultimately, it didn’t make a lot of sense for the Red Sox to keep rolling with Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Andruw Monasterio at the position with Story facing an extended absence. The 23-year-old was one of the top shortstop prospects in baseball before moving to third base last year.

Story was recently placed on the IL with the injury and was weighing whether to have the surgery. Tim Healey of the Boston Globe notes Story said last week that surgery would require 6-10 weeks to return. Andruw Monasterio and Isiah Kiner-Falefa have been filling in at shortstop with Story sidelined. It remains to be seen if Marcelo Mayer will shift from second base to shortstop now that it’s a confirmed multi-month absence. Manager Chad Tracy will address reporters later Friday as the Sox begin a weekend series versus the Twins.

The move is now official. It’s unclear whether Story will require surgery to address the groin issue that Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy told reporters has been bothering him pretty much all season. The lingering physical issue certainly helps explain his abysmal performance at the plate where he’s batted .206/.244/.303 triple-slash line with three homers and four steals through 41 games. It would make sense for the Red Sox to consider moving former top prospect Marcelo Mayer back to shortstop, but all indications are that Andruw Monasterio is going to be their short-term stopgap at the position with Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Nick Sogard taking the occasional turn. There should be some additional clarity on Story’s return timeline relatively soon.

No surprise here after Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy revealed that Story has been playing through a lingering groin issue pretty much all season. The 33-year-old shortstop has struggled to an abysmal .206/.244/.303 triple-slash line with three homers and four steals through 41 games. It’ll be Nick Sogard coming up from Triple-A Worcester to fill his roster spot. Putting former top prospect Marcelo Mayer at shortstop would make sense, but it was Andruw Monasterio at shortstop during Friday’s series opener in Atlanta.

It’s nice to finally hear after 41 games of struggling that Story has been playing through an injury since the spring. Hopefully a couple of extra days off allows him the time to heal, which should improve his bleak performance at the dish.

Hitting .206/.244/.303 despite 41 games played with just three homers and four steals, it makes sense to plead caution on dropping Story in fantasy because he had a similarly poor stretch to start last season. Shortstop also hasn’t had many non-obvious pickups waiting in the wings to displace him this year. Perhaps a day off will help him get right — playing everyday certainly hasn’t yet.

Story’s homer came in the second inning off Andrew Painter. The veteran shortstop has been scuffling badly this year and is now batting .211 with a .250 OBP, three homers, and four stolen bases. Story managed to get his strikeout rate under 27% last season en route to a 25/31 campaign. However, so far this year it’s back over 30% for the fourth time in five years.