The Boston Red Sox lost shortstop Trevor Story to a hernia injury on Saturday.
At the time of his injury, Story was one of the worst-qualified players in baseball.
While Story has traveled back to Boston to get opinions on whether he should get surgery, a new option has emerged at the position.
According to Tim Healey of the Boston Globe, second baseman Marcelo Mayer told interim manager Chad Tracy that he can fill in for the injured Story.
The 23-year-old has confidence that he can take over his natural position of shortstop.
What Did the Boston Red Sox Infielder Say to Tracy?
Mayer has played all 40 of his games at second base this season. However, that doesn’t mean he isn’t comfortable at shortstop.
Despite Story’s injury, Mayer stayed at second base on Sunday, with Andruw Monasterio at shortstop. Mayer hopes he’ll be back to playing shortstop soon.
“Obviously, that’s home to me,” Mayer said. “That’s where I’ve played my whole life. And we’ve had some discussions, going to get some reps there in practice whenever I can. But wherever Trace (tells) you to play, that’s what it’s going to be, whether it’s short, third, second. I’m just here to help the team.”
The Red Sox took Mayer fourth overall in the 2021 MLB Draft out of high school.
He would quickly cement himself as one of the top prospects in the game.
For four straight seasons, he would be a consensus top-15 prospect in baseball. In the minors, Mayer would play 269 out of 315 games at shortstop.
While Mayer would debut in 2025 with Boston, he has only played a combined three innings at the position in 85 total games, all of which came in 2025.
It’s worth wondering whether Mayer can adjust back to his natural position after not playing it for so long. However, he seems very confident he can do so.
How Has Mayer Done in His Career Thus Far?
Despite his top prospect status, Mayer has not lived up to expectations so far.
In 274 plate appearances, he has a career .223/.278/.359 slash line, with six home runs and 19 runs driven in.
According to his Baseball Savant page, it’s not just bad luck driving his poor start to his career.
In fact, he may be getting luckier than he should.
His expected batting average and slugging percentage are even worse than his actual numbers, and are in the 10th percentile or below.
When he’s making contact, it isn’t hard-hit at 39.8%, in the 41st percentile.
However, his defense at second base has been excellent, with +3 Outs Above Average, in the 92nd percentile.
His defense has translated to the majors, even if his offense has stalled thus far. However, it’s hard to project if he can carry that over to shortstop, even if it is his natural position.
This is especially because he has barely practiced at the position this year.
If Tracy gives Mayer the keys to shortstop, it could be an adjustment period for the former top prospect.
For a Red Sox team that clearly needs a spark, Mayer needs to get it going as the team sits three games back in the AL Wild Card standings.
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