Dustin Pedroia Placed on DL, Red Sox Hopes Fading

The Boston Red Sox have placed Dustin Pedroia on the disabled list with a torn muscle in his right

thumb.  According to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe, Pedroia will be heading to the 15-day DL after he initially resisted the idea when the injury first occurred in May.  He re-injured the thumb on Tuesday.

Pedroia has been the catalyst for the Red Sox offense and defense for since winning the Rookie of the Year in 2007.  He won the American League MVP in 2008.  This year, though, Pedroia is hitting just .266/.326/.400. He is a career .301/.369/.457 hitter.  His reduced performance this year has not helped the Red Sox this season, and with him on the DL, the Red Sox will struggle to catch the New York Yankees.

Boston is 42-40 and currently 7.5 games back of the Yankees.  They are in fourth place in the division and still 2 games out of the Wild Card hunt.  The gap between contenders and those destined to sit at home come October will continue to grow as we push on into the second half of the season.  Pedroia’s injury and subsequent stint on the DL could put a kink in the Red Sox plans to make the postseason after falling just short last year.

With the drama of last season, and the continued drama this season, the only real cure for Boston will be a trip to the play-offs.  Pedroia has been one of the most outspoken players on the Red Sox roster about the state of the team, Bobby Valentine’s handling of certain situations, and the club’s future.  With his veteran presence relegated to a cheerleader role for at least 15 days, the Sox could struggle.

Pedroia was drafted by Boston in the second round of the 2004 draft.  He has since risen to be one of the best second basemen in the game.

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