Colorado Rockies: The biggest questions surrounding Trevor Story’s injury

OK, Colorado Rockies fans. The season seems to be hanging in the balance on this Tuesday afternoon. Not only are the Rockies continuing a critical series in Los Angeles, but they are also going to likely be doing it without Trevor Story playing any time in the near future.

During the fourth inning of Monday’s loss at Chavez Ravine, the Colorado Rockies All-Star shortstop left the game after suffering what was termed, “elbow soreness.” He talked about his injury after the loss and you can read his comments in this article.

On Tuesday afternoon, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic tweeted out that the Rockies and Story could be looking at a worst-case scenario. With Colorado battling for its first-ever National League West title, the injury certainly couldn’t have come at a worse time, no matter its severity.

Later in the day, however, Bob Nightengale of USA Today said that Story might not miss the rest of the regular season. That would be a huge sigh of relief.

Once there is official word or further details on Story’s condition and outlook, we will update this article. However, until then, let’s look at some of the biggest questions (outside of how long he’ll be out, because we’re still waiting to be told that as well) we’ve been hearing and the best answers we can provide.

UPDATE: We just saw this…

And here is some good news…

If Story is out, what alternatives do the Rockies have?

First, let’s get this out of the way. Top prospect Brendan Rodgers is not going to come in and save the day. He’s not only not on Colorado’s 40-man roster but he is also has not faced Major League pitching in his young career. To not only bring him up but thrust him into the middle of a pennant chase simply isn’t going to happen. As a franchise, Colorado has never been about making abrupt moves and certainly won’t start now.

The Rockies have three alternatives at shortstop in their dugout at the moment – Ian Desmond, Garrett Hampson and Pat Valaika. Much like Rodgers, Hampson hasn’t been through the battle for a playoff spot before and Colorado manager Bud Black talked to me in San Francisco about his desire to have veterans in the lineup. Even Valaika has more of a taste for what it means to chase a playoff spot (after last season’s Wild Card chase).

All of that being said, Hampson was in the starting lineup on Tuesday. That’s a huge sign of confidence in someone who has just 23 at-bats this season. If Hampson can come through on offense and defense, that would be a huge plus for Colorado.

Desmond starts Tuesday night at first base but don’t be surprised if he plays some shortstop as the regular season continues. Of course, this depends on how long Story is out.