Overview
- The Red Sox put 23-year-old Marcelo Mayer into the shortstop role and he made his first big-league start there on Sunday after taking ground balls at the position all week.
- Trevor Story had surgery for a sports hernia in mid-May and is expected to miss multiple weeks, a development that prompted Boston to accelerate Mayer’s move back to shortstop.
- Interim manager Chad Tracy said Mayer will generally stay at shortstop while Story recovers but will sit for certain matchups to manage his development and the lineup.
- Mayer is praised for his defense and range, but he has struggled badly at the plate this season with a .214/.277/.300 line and pronounced trouble against changeups and low 'shadow-zone' pitches that pitchers are exploiting.
- The change has immediate roster effects—Nick Sogard shifted to second base and day-to-day lineup and pitching decisions will be shaped by Mayer’s matchup limits—and it creates a test of whether returning him to his natural position can jump-start his offense over the coming weeks.