BOSTON -- The second pitch of Saturday’s game at Fenway Park was hit to Trevor Story -- and not a second too soon for the Red Sox returning shortstop, who gathered it and fired to first for the out.

When Story fractured his left shoulder on a dive attempt in Anaheim on April 5 and had surgery a few days later, it was widely assumed his season was over.

But Story beat the odds with relentless work ethic during his rehab and the reward came on Saturday, when the Red Sox activated him from the 60-day injured list and put the shortstop in the seventh spot in the lineup.

It was a gratifying return for Story, who was in the middle of things defensively all night and contributed an RBI bloop single to his team’s 7-5 victory over the White Sox.

While Tyler O’Neill (who hit a pair of homers) was the headliner on offense, Story got re-acclimated from that second pitch on.

"Yeah, definitely,” said Story of getting a chance to contribute right away. ‘That’s just kind of how it goes, you know. It’s baseball. The ball is going to find you and it was nice to get that first one out of the way. I felt like it was a busy night. It was great to feel all the first things as I come back. It was a good night.”

Story fielded all seven of his chances cleanly and started two double plays. His veteran presence could be felt by his teammates, including starting pitcher Cooper Criswell, who pitched to contact and went five innings for the win.

"Just the way he carries himself, he’s confident in himself and I think every other teammate sees that and it helps their confidence out there on defense,” said Criswell. “So yeah, it's awesome to have him back. I know it helped my confidence out there. Any ground ball, if it's hit to him there’s a good chance it’s an out."

Story will try to help the Red Sox revive their postseason chances, which had taken a hit during a tough two-week stretch but look slightly better now after winning two straight against the White Sox while the Twins lost two in a row to the Royals.

With 20 games left in the season, the Red Sox trail the Twins by four games for the third American League Wild Card spot and the Royals by 5 1/2 games, following Kansas City's win over Minnesota on Saturday night.

"Yeah, that's a big part of it,” said Story. “We would never put myself or my body at risk. We're being responsible about it. But a lot of it has to do with where we're at. It's time to go. We really don’t have much time left."

The 31-year-old was activated after a four-game Minor League rehab assignment, capping it with a 4-for-5 effort for Triple-A Worcester on Thursday.

Given how many months Story has missed, Red Sox manager Alex Cora has set expectations low for the right-handed hitter at the plate.

When the season started, the Red Sox were thrilled to finally have Story fully healthy again after he played just 43 games in ‘23 due to right elbow surgery that he underwent the previous offseason.

Then there was instant deflation when Story landed hard on his non-throwing shoulder and suffered a glenoid fracture and a torn labrum. The timeline for a return was six months. Story made it back a shade past the five-month mark.

"I still remember that game in Anaheim, then a few days later they said what it was and it was like, ‘No chance.’” said Cora. “I think going to California for the rehab -- nothing against our guys here -- but just kind of disconnecting himself from the day in and day out here in Boston, helped him. I think that cleared his mind."

As Story held court in the middle of the clubhouse following Saturday’s win, it was hard not to think back to his tearful press conference in that exact same spot on April 9, when the news had just come out that he was having extensive surgery.

"We didn't think I would be here at this point,” said Story. “It feels like forever ago that I was kind of here fielding questions about having a season-ending injury. I’m just so grateful for the opportunity to do it [again]."

With Story’s injury happening during the season-opening road trip, this marked his first game at Fenway in ‘24.

"Yeah, it was great,” Story said. “The best fans in baseball. The best place to play, too. So just feeling that energy. I feel it when I’m in the dugout watching the boys over the season, but there’s nothing like being out there and playing, so I'll never take that for granted. And yeah, I’m looking forward to a lot more of that."