In an unfortunate piece of news for the Colorado Rockies, star shortstop Trevor Story has been placed on the disabled list. What does this mean for Colorado’s outlook for the rest of this season?
The Colorado Rockies announced on Tuesday evening that shortstop Trevor Story was headed to the 15-day disabled list after he tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb.
The #Rockies have made the following transactions: pic.twitter.com/PMoaYe9s84
— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) August 2, 2016
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Story was injured on July 30, and had X-Rays taken which came back negative. Colorado initially described his injury as a “jammed left thumb.” However, the situation is much more serious than the Rockies had hoped. At this point, it’s unclear if Story will be able to return this season.
For some context, Los Angeles Angels shortstop Andrelton Simmons tore the UCL in his thumb earlier this year, and returned after five weeks on the disabled list. To be clear, though, Simmons returned quicker than most players who have suffered this same injury.
This is a crushing turn of events for the Rockies, who had hopes of climbing the ranks in the National League Wild Card race. Colorado entered Tuesday one game under .500, at 52-53, 4.5 games back of the second wild card spot.
The loss of Story, and the subsequent effect it may have on Colorado’s record, is a tough break for a team that could have sold their assets at the trade deadline. The Rockies had two players in particular that could have garnered large returns: Carlos Gonzalez and Charlie Blackmon. In a way, keeping Gonzalez and Blackmon can be considered Colorado’s way of “going for it.” The Rockies didn’t make any huge additions at the trade deadline, but they didn’t concede the season and look toward next season — as the Oakland Athletics and Milwaukee Brewers did — either.
The Rockies were poised to let things play out with their core intact, but losing Story is significant.
Story was in the midst of a phenomenal season, in which he was on track to be a finalist for the National League Rookie of the Year award. In 97 games, Story hit .272/.341/.567, with 27 home runs and 72 RBI. Story quickly became a mainstay for the Rockies this season, after longtime shortstop Troy Tulowitzki was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays last season.
To take Story’s roster spot, Colorado recalled infielder Rafael Ynoa from Triple-A. On Tuesday against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Daniel Descalso started in Story’s place at shortstop.
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The Colorado Rockies planned to make a run at the postseason this year, and while it is still technically possible, the road to the playoffs figures to be much more difficult for Colorado without their star shortstop, Trevor Story.