Trevor Story came through in a major way, both for the Boston Red Sox and himself during Sunday’s series finale against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park.
Story entered the afternoon contest riding an ice-cold slump in May — he hit .158 with 35 strikeouts, totaling 15 hits through 95 at-bats — along with an 0-for-3 showing on Saturday night. But with a new month came a clean slate and a refined attitude that translated into a pivotal performance to help the Red Sox make it out with a 3-1 victory in their rubber match with the Braves.
In the first inning, Story wasted no time with the bases loaded and crushed a three-RBI double off Atlanta starter Bryce Elder to give Boston a quick and easy 3-0 lead.
“You’re looking for little things like that to create some momentum,” Story said Sunday, per NESN. “What’s in the past is in the past. We can’t harp on that, but we can learn from it. Going forward, just trying to be the best athlete that I can. Keep it simple. Less is more for me a lot of times, so that’s what we’re dialed into right now.”
Story and the Red Sox had been undergoing a costly downward trend in squandering countless opportunities with runners in scoring position. It was a common theme throughout the club’s five-game losing streak that stuck out like a sore thumb during Boston’s three-game sweep suffered at the hands of the Milwaukee Brewers — Story went 2-for-11 in that series, which dropped him to a .218 batting average.
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“Just kind of put a nice swing on a good pitch to hit,” Story said of the double.
Granted, the Red Sox still struck out a baker’s dozen times on Sunday versus Atlanta’s pitching staff, but Story’s two-out double ensured the swoon wouldn’t come at the cost of a series loss this time.
With starting third baseman Alex Bregman down on the injured list (right quad), Boston needs all the assistance it can get. The team has fallen from second place in the American League East during Bregman’s last appearance to fourth in the division at 29-32. Getting a spark from Story’s bat is an encouraging sign that needs to continue.
“It started in Milwaukee,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters, per NESN. “Took some walks. Hit the ball hard against two lefties. Seeing the ball well. Played great defense today and little by little, you can see him hitting the ball harder. … He put some good swings today and the defense was solid.”
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Story still has time to carry on the momentum and use it to propel a much-needed season-long turnaround that’ll benefit the Red Sox going forward. Boston’s win put the team just three games away from restoring its second-place standing in the division and eight games away from the first-place New York Yankees.
