#5 - Trevor Story - SS
This year's free agent crop of shortstops leaves a lot to be desired. While Boston would love to improve up the middle in the infield, they do have Trevor Story under contract for the next several years and he has the upside to be the impact shortstop that the Red Sox sorely need.
Make no mistake: the first couple years of Story's tenure with Boston have been a disaster. He dealt with injuries throughout the 2022 season while posting a career low .737 OPS at the plate with just 16 homers. The news didn't get better in 2023 as Story had to have Tomy John surgery before the season even started. Boston did activate him in August this season, but he did not play well upon his return which is mildly concerning.
The bet here is that Story will return to form with a full and normal offseason and will be better than any of the free agent options available. That is far from a sure thing and if Story struggles again in 2024 with injuries and/or production, the calls to give top prospect Marcelo Mayer a shot will grow exponentially.
For the moment, though, we are willing to give Story a shot who just a couple years ago was one of the best shortstop bats in baseball. If he does bounce back, having a quality righty bat in the fifth spot here helps the cause considerably.