Trevor Story had one of the best games of his career Thursday night, helping push the Red Sox to a 12-6 win over the Mariners at Fenway Park. Story was so good that J.D. Martinez was relegated to afterthought despite a four-hit, three-run ballgame.
Story also had four hits, but that included three home runs. He drove in seven runs, scored five, stole a base and even drew a walk. It's one of those situations where the box score showing 4-5-4-7 looks absolutely glorious yet still doesn't even come close to giving the full context for what a ridiculous game Story had.
He had nearly all the high-leverage hits, too.
The Red Sox fell behind 4-0 in the second inning. Story chopped that in half with a two-run shot in the bottom of the inning. Next inning, Story tied it up with another two-run homer. In the sixth inning, Story came through with the go-ahead, RBI single, making it 5-4. Those were the three highest plays for the Red Sox in win probability added (WPA).
He then stole third and scored an insurance run.
Story's third home run could probably be classified as just showing off -- it was a three-run blast to make it 12-5 Red Sox -- but it was the proverbial cherry-on-top moment in a career game.
This was only the second three-homer game of Story's career. He ties his career high with seven RBI (it was also just the second time he's done so). The five runs are a first for him. The four hits tie a career high and it was the fifth four-hit game for him. Add it all up and this was the best offensive night of his career.
He did a number on his 2022 stat line, too.
Story started the night with a triple slash line of .205/.293/.320. He is now hitting .230/.317/.413. He more than doubled his home run total, going from two to five. He had 16 RBI before the game started and now has 23. He only had 14 runs and that jumped to 19.
Story signed a six-year, $140 million deal with the Red Sox this past offseason, leaving behind the Rockies. He struggled for a while, but has gotten things going as of late. Thursday was more a culmination than something coming from nowhere. In his last nine games, Story is now 11 for 33 with a double, five homers, 13 RBI and 11 runs.
Maybe it's a coincidence and maybe it's not, but the Red Sox are 6-3 in those last nine games. Before that, they were among the most disappointing teams in baseball at 10-19.
