The Boston Red Sox finally saw Trevor Story in full force in 2025, and manager Alex Cora is hoping to get that version of the All-Star infielder again in 2026.
Cora opened up about why he expects another huge year from Story in 2026 on the heels of his bounce back season last year.
Story was hampered by injuries in 2023 and 2024 that limited him to just 274 plate appearances over 69 games those years.
But in 2025, Story slashed .263/.308/.433 with 25 home runs and 96 RBIs in 654 plate appearances while playing 157 games — his games and RBI totals were his most since 2018.
The Red Sox Expect Trevor Story ‘To Perform’
Story is about to enter Year 5 of his six-year contract signed late in the 2022 offseason. But Boston is finally able to expect big things from its 33-year-old shortstop, who aside from huge power numbers also set a career high with 31 stolen bases last season.
“We expect him to go out there and perform,” Cora said. “We know who he is, what he’s capable of doing. He’s a force running the bases. He can hit the ball out of the ballpark, and last year he drove in runs. So he’ll be in the middle of the lineup, either the top or the middle of the lineup.”
The Red Sox will need Story’s offense this year, especially with third baseman Alex Bregman gone to the Chicago Cubs in free agency. Fortunately, Cora has seen all positives from his shortstop so far in camp.
“He’s in a great place mentally, physically, you see him [he looks] amazing,” Cora said. “The way he goes about his business and the way he shows up, we expect the same thing.”
Trevor Story ‘Had One Bad Month Last Year,’ According to Alex Cora
There was a point in 2025 at which Red Sox fans were worried about whether Story’s days as a star-caliber player were finished. Cora acknowledged that Tuesday.
“He only had one bad month last year,” Cora said. “It was May.”
Story slashed .158/.200/.232 with two homers and seven RBIs and struck out 35 times in 95 at-bats in the month. After bottoming out in the first week of June — his average was down to .214 and OPS was at a paltry .582 on June 6 — Story turned it all around.
“He just had a rough May,” Cora said. “He actually hit the ball hard in April. Had a tough [May], chased a lot of pitches. Swung and missed a lot. But then he reset it and he took off.
“He made the adjustments, and he was amazing.”
Story’s struggles at the plate were confined to one month, but his defense was an issue all season in 2025. Though he led the American League in putouts (219), Story also had the most errors of all AL shortstops (19), seven of which came in September.
Shortstop is arguably the most important defensive position on the field, so Story bouncing back in that element is integral too. Cora feels strongly he will do so.
“Bad mechanics,” Cora said when asked about Story’s struggles. “He seems more in sync now. His arm is playing better. He’s using his lower half a lot better than what he did last year.”
Alex Cora Sends Strong Message on Trevor Story Ahead of First Spring Training Game