Despite the doubters, that come every time Pedroia hits the injury list, Boston’s legendary second baseman isn’t finished just yet.
Groundhog Day has cursed the Boston Red Sox once more. On Thursday, it was announced that beloved second baseman, Dustin Pedroia, would, yet again, hit the Injured List.
Pedroia left Wednesday’s loss to New York after feeling a pop in his left knee, the same knee which he had surgery to repair that kept him sidelined for the majority of the last two years. First of all it looked like Pedey could miss another extended period of time, but now, after being placed on the 10-Day IL, it looks as though he should be okay to get back to it after this short stint.
Albeit, this misfortune-ridden break couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Red Sox. After beginning their World Title defense with a mere 6-13 record, they need everything to go their way, and losing their captain figure certainly won’t be beneficial right now.
This news has, once again, sparked conversation over the legitimacy of Pedroia’s future in Major League Baseball for the Red Sox. After an injury-infested 2017 season, Pedroia’s last couple of years have been hell for the now-35-year-old. A knee injury that resulted in offseason surgery saw him miss all but three games in the 2018 season. Pedroia was obviously present, vocally, and important to helping his team dominate their way to another World Series title – which is capped with Pedroia’s third ring.
Everybody hoped 2019 would bring new life for the Red Sox cult hero, however, it hasn’t started off the way it was intended to go. Pedroia’s appeared in six games up until now after an extended individual spring training period that was intended to get him going. But you can’t do much about injuries, especially one like Pedey has. This severity of it, and the surgery it took to get him back on track has developed many doubters over his future as a pro ball player.
There are many baseball fans, even across Red Sox Nation, who can’t see a future for Pedey, and they’re entitled to think this, especially after the evidence we’ve been shown over the last couple of years. The facts are he’s now 35 and is just starting to come back from a terrible break that required gruesome surgery. But don’t sleep on our second baseman yet.
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Pedroia’s love for the game itself gives him a lot more value than some might think. His production will undoubtedly never get to the levels that we’ve seen in the past again, but that’s not to say he can’t be an important second baseman for this team.
This short stint on the IL will hopefully be just that and should allow Pedroia a chance to get back into playing regularly. With this team, we’re lucky to have the likes of Eduardo Nunez and Brock Holt to be in a platoon with Pedroia at second, taking plenty of the load off of him. Pedey isn’t going to be the everyday second baseman that everybody wants him to be but he can be an important piece over the next few years. Similarly to Steve Pearce and the on-fire Mitch Moreland at first, the second base position can be looked at as pretty strong with plenty of production both offensively and defensively going forward.
No, we don’t have 2008 AL MVP Dustin Pedroia playing at second everyday, but we have got the experienced Pedey who’s just as important to this organization’s behind the scenes happenings as he is to what happens on the diamond. Let’s just hope that Pedroia and the Sox can catch a break and he can contribute as efficiently as he could do barring the injuries. His defensive set is still there, making him a valuable piece, as for his offence, his swing hasn’t changed and there’ll be plenty of opportunities for him to prove that he’s still got it.