Uncertainty on Dustin Pedroia’s Thumb Could Force a DL Stint

We all know what a competitive player Dustin Pedroia is and now he wants to avoid the DL and play through his injured thumb.  According to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe, Pedey has a torn abductor muscle in his thumb and suffered it roughly three weeks earlier but aggravated it in the Monday afternoon game against the Detroit Tigers.  Now Pedroia wants to build a special brace so he can play with the injury and avoid missing any long-term action what would likely be 3-4 weeks.

“The swelling in my thumb has gone down. The bruising has gone down so we’re just waiting to see if I could play,” Pedroia said, courtesy of the Globe.

But is this the smartest thing for the Red Sox and their franchise player?  Is it worth risking further injury that could sideline #15 for an extended period of time or is it best to sit for a couple of weeks and come back fully healthy and raring to go.  Remember 2010 when Pedey had the broken bone in his foot and he tried to comeback too early and what happened next?  He missed the rest of the season.

Currently the management hasn’t made a decision on what to do with Pedroia and Cherington told the Globe that there wasn’t any information yet if he could do long-term damage if he attempts to play through it. A decision could come in the next day or two.  Given the Red Sox track record with injuries and misdiagnosis in the past years (Ellsbury), I would suggest a second, third maybe even a fourth opinion be done to avoid elevating the risk of losing Pedey for more than two weeks.

The Red Sox are rolling and Pedroia’s hussle and leadership is a foundation to their success.  This team is better off without him for a short period of time versus multiple months so let’s hope they don’t rush Pedroia back too soon and let him heal properly.