The Red Sox made a decision on Trevor Story after he blasted the firing of Alex Cora, raising questions about team direction in the wake of Saturday’s surprise mass dismissal of Cora and five of his coaches.

“Trevor Story is not happy with the decisions and says he wants to clear the air with Craig Breslow today,” reported MassLive Red Sox beat writer Chris Cotillo. “Says ‘some of the best coaches in the world didn’t get a fair shot.'”

The lineup move quickly shifted focus to potential fallout, as players grappled with how the decision might impact roles and clubhouse dynamics.

Newly named Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy was promoted from Triple-A Worcester where he managed numerous players now on the Boston big league roster including Sunday’s starting pitcher Connelly Early, as well as former No. 1 prospect Roman Anthony and 2021 No. 4 overall draft pick Marcelo Mayer, outfielder Jarren Duran, catcher Connor Wong, and Gold Glove center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela, according to a report by Boston.com.

But Story is not one of those players. The 33-year-old shortstop was a 2011 first-round draft pick of the Colorado Rockies in 2011. He signed as a free agent in 2022 on a six-year, $140 million contract.

Story also criticized the firing decision by chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, saying that the coaches who were fired after the Red Sox 10-17 start “didn’t get a fair shot.”

Whether his comments were connected to the decision or not, the Red Sox and Tracy took action on Sunday.

New Manager Makes Lineup Decision

Story had started all 27 Red Sox games this season, but when the Red Sox lineup card was posted publicly prior to Sunday’s game, Story’s name was not on it.

Neither Tracy nor any member of the Red Sox management gave a reason for the decision. But Story’s performance has been underwhelming so far to say the least. The 209-pound Story is literally not hitting his weight, with a .198 batting average after 111 official at-bats.

Story has hit only two home runs. That’s a pace of just one homer every 55.5 at-bats. Last season, Story hit 25 round-trippers, a rate of one every 24.48 at-bats.

Story’s OPS — the stat that is simply a combination of on-base percentage and slugging average — stands at a paltry .533. In addition, Story has made four errors in the field in his 27 games.

Story Chose to Return to Boston

In his six-year contract, Story had a clause that allowed him to opt out and become a free agent after last season, which almost certainly would have seen him leave the Red Sox and sign with another organization. Instead, Story chose to return to Boston.

His decisions guaranteed that he will remain with the Red Sox, unless the club decides to absorb all or part of his remaining salary. Story is set to make $25 million this season, and another $25 million in 2027.

Story was paid a total of $62.5 million in the first three seasons of his Red Sox contract, despite playing only 163 of 486 possible games due to a series of injuries.

On Sunday, according to a report by The Athletic, Story said that he planned to confront Breslow about the firing decisions “today,” but acknowledged that the fact that players were not told of the shocking moves was “not the nature of the business.”

“If this shows us anything,” Story said, as quoted by The Athletic, “it’s we’re here to play baseball, and that’s it. We don’t make decisions. We don’t have any input on that.”