Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora left open the possibility of moving shortstop Trevor Story out of the two hole in the lineup following the team’s 8-6 loss to the San Diego Padres on Sunday.
One day later, Story has been bumped down to the fifth spot, while designated hitter Masataka Yoshida will bat second on Monday against the Milwaukee Brewers.
The 33-year-old infielder started Boston’s first nine games this season batting second.
“See if it works,” Cora said, according to MassLive Red Sox beat writer Christopher Smith. “Although yesterday, I thought it was OK offensively.”
Boston has averaged only 3.3 runs per game in the early going but scored a season-high six times on Sunday.
Story has struggled through the first nine contests, going 5 for 42 with one home run, two RBIs, no walks and a team-high 17 strikeouts.
Yoshida is 3-for-13 with no home runs, three RBIs, six walks and a .474 on-base percentage across seven games.
“Just mix it up, Cora said, per Smith. “Hopefully a different spot helps you to unlock it and relax. But as you guys know, in this game, you can’t control the at-bat. At one point, it’s probably bases loaded, two outs, and it’s the same thing. So regardless of where you hit, we’ve gotta make sure we slow it down. We’ve been talking about swinging a lot and chasing. So this is a good pitching staff. They’re very aggressive in the zone. So hopefully be on time and put good swings on it.”
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