Roman Anthony’s return to action has been long overdue, as has Trevor Story’s. Both are nearing returns to action after being on the Injured List since May 4th and May 16th, respectively. Anthony, a man seen as a crucial piece to the Boston Red Sox’s future success, has seen his last two seasons derailed by brutal injury luck. Story, after a return to form in 2025, has struggled to stay healthy in 2026. Despite this, the Red Sox have turned their season around, now at 73-60 with a 5.5-game lead for the second wild card spot.
Roman Anthony’s return to action started on August 24th with Double-A Portland and later with Triple-A Worcester, while Story has been exclusively in the latter. Anthony has gone 7-for-23 with two home runs and seven RBI in seven games, while Story is 5-for-32 with three RBI in nine games. There’s a clear path for Anthony to succeed, whereas Story’s path is a lot more complicated, to say the least.
Anthony, a second-round pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, rose through the top 100 prospect rankings to the number two spot in the 2025 preseason rankings behind only Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki. Despite only playing 71 games, Anthony finished third in AL Rookie of the Year voting. He tallied eight home runs, 32 RBIs, and an OPS+ of 140 predominantly as the Red Sox leadoff hitter. He was vitally important to the Sox’s ability to put runs on the board. With Roman in the lineup, the Red Sox scored 4.78 runs per game. After Roman Anthony went on the IL with an oblique strain, the Red Sox’s scoring dropped to 4.1 runs per game.
Signing with the Red Sox as a free agent ahead of the 2022 season, Story was a two-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger during his six-year stint with the Colorado Rockies. Apart from an abbreviated 2016 rookie year thanks to a torn UCL in his thumb, Story was remarkably healthy during his stint in the Mile High City. He notched three 20-home-run, 20-stolen-base seasons during his tenure.
Injuries have plagued his entire Red Sox tenure, however. He has had one healthy season with the Red Sox, that being 2025, in which Story went back to being the same slugging shortstop he was in Colorado. He led the Red Sox in home runs (25), RBI (96), and stolen bases (31). However, Story no longer brings the same value as he once did.
The true wild card of the situation is Franklin Arias. The current #3 prospect in baseball according to MLB.com has put up 23 home runs and 76 RBI for a .957 OPS in 100 games between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester. At only 20 years old, Arias seems primed to take over shortstop for the Red Sox for the foreseeable future. His call-up seems imminent at the moment, and it wouldn’t be too out of left field for the Red Sox either.
Former longtime Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts debuted as a 20-year-old in 2013. However, do the Red Sox want to take a gamble on a prospect with potential who has never played in the show, or do they take an equally big gamble on someone with an injury history who has proven to be a superb MLB player when healthy?
With Roman Anthony’s return inevitable, can he help the Red Sox win games in the 2026 season? Yes, he can. Anthony could be very valuable to the Red Sox at the moment. With a month left in the regular season, Anthony should have enough time to get his bearings and get enough reps to catch up to major-league pitching. He should take over the designated hitter spot and oust Mickey Gasper from the role.
However, Story shouldn’t be taking the field for the Red Sox at the moment, as his path back to the majors is not so straightforward. He currently sports a .156 batting average through nine games in Triple-A Worcester, and Andruw Monasterio has performed well since taking over at shortstop following Story’s injury, posting a .728 OPS, good for a 105 OPS+. That’s not even taking into account the possibility of Franklin Arias finally getting called up.
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