Familiar face at McCoy
Dustin Pedroia returns for rehab assignment
PAWTUCKET – Dustin Pedroia walked into the PawSox clubhouse at McCoy Stadium at 1:15 on Monday afternoon – exactly five hours before first pitch and roughly two hours before his temporary teammates were scheduled to report.
“He’s always an early bird to the yard,” Pawtucket manager Kevin Boles said. “Big smiles and said he was ready to go.”
By 4:30 p.m., Pedroia was in full uniform and chatting with infielder Tzu-Wei Lin as he sat by his locker. Much time has passed since the 2007 American League Rookie of the Year and 2008 Most Valuable Player has played in a game where the score was kept. Clearly, Pedroia was raring to go as the final leg of his comeback – a Triple-A rehab assignment – was officially on the itinerary.
“I’m looking forward to getting under the lights. It’s going to be fun,” said Pedroia while sitting in the PawSox dugout after batting practice. “Obviously, there’s been some tough days, but I’m excited to be out there playing and continuing to work my way back.”
Pedroia’s first of what’s expected to be several games with the PawSox saw him go 1-for-3, score one run, and handle his only fielding chance at second base. His base hit came in the fourth inning and on a 90-mph offering. He sent a 2-2 pitch out to right field.
He flew out to right field in the first inning and grounded to second in the fifth. He’ll be in Pawtucket’s lineup on Tuesday night, take Wednesday and Thursday off, then resume his quest to return to Fenway Park on Friday.
“It was good to put the ball on the barrel, but obviously I’m going to need more at-bats to lock in,” Pedroia said. “There’s little things you miss like throwing the ball around between innings.”
For Pedroia, it’s been a long and frustrating road following cartilage restoration surgery in his left knee last October. It’s also featured a lonely existence … living in Fort Myers, Fla. by himself for a month, reporting to JetBlue Park for 10 a.m. extended spring training games, and hitting doubles against an imaginary outfield defense.
Even when he was hitting against Austin Maddox and Tommy Layne while working up a sweat in triple-digit heat, Pedroia was in his element. If he heard someone complaining, he wouldn’t hesitate to help that person re-think his position.
“Really, it doesn’t stink. It’s baseball and you should enjoy it. Someone could take it away from you quickly,” Pedroia said. “When you’re not playing, it’s like you’ve had something taken away from you that you’ve done your whole life. It didn’t matter what time the game was, how hot it was, or who you’re playing with. Those games there … I played the same way like I would if I were in Boston.”
From running to hitting to fielding, Pedroia says he’s passed every physical checkpoint thus far.
“I don’t have any issues right now. This is the last step to test if my knee is back to normal,” he said. “I can definitely drive the ball and put something behind it, but getting into a real game is definitely important.”
Pedroia still does his hop before getting into position defensively. Such a pre-pitch practice hasn’t been scraped in an effort to save wear and tear.
“That’s not why I hurt my knee,” Pedroia said. “Once I got out there, I didn’t even think about my knee once. That’s when you know you’re good.”
Thanks to staying the course and sticking to the rehab plan mapped out by Red Sox medical personnel, Pedroia is on the verge of getting back to the Red Sox sooner than perhaps even he originally anticipated.
“I’m like four months ahead of schedule,” he said with a smile. “I think the quickest someone came back from this surgery was 11 months. I’m almost at seven months, but we’re going to keep building.”
When does rejoin the Red Sox, he’ll be playing for a manager who was once his big-league teammate in Alex Cora.
“Alex has been great as far as communicating and letting everyone know what’s expected out of them,” Pedroia said.
Given Pedroia’s playing address at the moment, it seemed appropriate to travel down memory lane and ask him about the parts of two seasons he logged in Pawtucket (200506) before becoming an everyday fixture in Boston’s lineup.
“I found out I was getting called up after not playing the second game of a doubleheader in Ottawa. I’m sitting there the whole time wondering if I did something wrong, but that’s when I got the news,” Pedroia said. “You have to hit steps to get there and this is the last one. I always liked it here. Good crowd and good places to eat.”