Dustin Pedroia

From SoSH

Dustin Pedroia (born August 17, 1983 in Woodland, CA) is the starting second baseman for the Boston Red Sox. He was drafted in the 2nd round in 2004 out of Arizona State and was the top Red Sox draft pick that year. Standing only 5'9", some scouts believe that Pedroia has limited offensive potential. While he has done his best to dispel that notion, it is still unclear whether his long-term future is at second base or at shortstop. While he has great hands, his arm strength and range may not be enough for him to stick at SS.

Contents 1 Scouting Report 2 Amateur Career 2.1 Amateur Awards 3 Minor League Career 3.1 Minor League Awards 4 Major League Career 5 Awards 6 Moments in the Sun 7 Trivia 8 Quotes 9 External Links

Scouting Report

• Small infielder had a tremendous career at Arizona State. Average power for a middle infielder, with good bat speed and excellent plate discipline. Loves the game and has fantastic instincts. Plays top-notch defense up the middle, named the 2003 National Defensive Player of the Year. Very scrappy; a great teammate. Has pro experience at both shortstop and second base; many scouts project him to be better suited for second base down the line. Overall, Pedroia may not be an all-star, but is likely to be a dependable second baseman at the major league level, which is a great asset for any team, especially on a cost-controlled basis. ~ SoxProspects.com

Amateur Career

Pedroia was drafted by the Red Sox in the 2nd round of the 2004 Draft. He was rated by Baseball America as the 53rd best prospect for the draft. An All-American at Arizona State, he was also named the 2003 Collegiate Baseball National Defensive player of the year for his performance at shortstop where he posted a .975 fielding percentage and committed no errors in his final 26 games.

Year	Team Name	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS
2002	Arizona State	58	236	51	82	13	2	1	45	5	24	19	0.347	0.417	0.432	0.849
2003	Arizona State	68	297	83	120	34	3	4	52	3	36	13	0.404	0.472	0.579	1.051
2004	Arizona State	59	244	78	96	24	1	9	49	9	48	15	0.393	0.502	0.611	1.113

Amateur Awards

• 2003 Pac-10 Co-Player of the Year
• 2003 NCAA Defensive Player of the Year
• 2003 First Team All-American (Louisville Slugger)
• 2003 D1 First Team All-American (ABCA)
• 2004 Golden Spikes Award Finalist
• 2004 First-Team Baseball America and USA Today All-American

Minor League Career

Pedroia got off to a very hot start in Augusta, earning a promotion to High-A Sarasota after only 50 at-bats. He continued to mash in the Florida State League, posting a .940 OPS in 107 at-bats. In 2005, Pedroia was assigned to AA Portland and continued to crush the ball, outshining his double play partner Hanley Ramirez. Promoted midseason, his Pawtucket performance suffered after he was hit on the wrist by a pitch, an injury that also prompted the organization to trade for Tony Graffanino rather than call him up. While some hoped he would win the starting shortstop job in 2006 following the trade of Edgar Renteria, the acquistion of Alex Gonzalez sent Pedroia back to AAA, where he started slowly. In AAA, Pedroia played second base 1 out of every 3 games. In the other 2, he would play shortstop. This process has made him a much more versatile player. After his slow start, Pedroia came on strong and made his major league debut in August of 2006.

Minor League Awards

• 2005 Red Sox Minor League Offensive Player of the Year
• 2005 Post-Season Eastern League All-Star
• Red Sox ML Base Runner of the Month (April 2005)
• Red Sox Minor League "Quality Plate Appearances" Award (June 2005)
• Red Sox Minor League Defensive Player of the Month (June 2006)
• Red Sox Minor League Offensive Player of the Month (July 2006)
• 2006 International League All-Star

Major League Career

Pedroia was called up by the Red Sox in August of 2006. His first start came on August 23rd against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Pedroia ended the year with a line of .191/.258/.303 with 2 HR and 7 RBI.

He earned the starting job at second base in 2007. As of July 16, he has a .313 BA and an .839 OPS with 4 HR and 27 RBI. He also has flashed a good eye, with 32 BB to 22 K. He only has 2 GIDP in 89 games.

Awards

• 2007 American League Rookie of the Year
• May 2007 AL Rookie of the Month
• American League Player of the Week (May 28-June 3, 2007)

Moments in the Sun

• Dustin made a key diving stop to get the first out of the 7th inning, grabbing a sharp grounder from Miguel Tejada and tossing him out with time to spare to help preserve Clay Buchholz's successful no-hitter attempt on Clay's second career start on September 1, 2007. He also went 2-for-5, and scored both times he reached base.

• With Jacoby Ellsbury on third, Bones hit a 2 run HR off Rafael Betancourt in the 7th inning, extending the Red Sox lead to 5-2. In probably the best game of his career to date, he singled and scored the first run of the game, hit a 2 run HR and hit a bases-loaded double in the eighth unloading the bases.

• The HR was only the 5th in MLB history by a rookie in a Game 7.

• In the 2007 World Series, he became the 2nd player to ever hit a leadoff HR in a World Series game 1, in his first at bat.

Trivia

• Pedroia made his major league debut and collected his first major league hit on August 22, 2006 against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
• Pedroia collected his first major league home run on September 9, 2006 against Kansas City Royals' pitcher Luke Hudson.
• The first Red Sox rookie to have a multi-hit game on Opening Day since Brady Anderson in 1988.

Quotes

• “He'll make an out against a guy throwing 98, and when he comes to the dugout, we'll ask, "What's he got?" Pedroia will tell us, "He ain't got shit!" – Brandon Moss, April 2005

External Links

• Baseball-Reference.com - Career Statistics and Analysis
• TheBaseballCube.com - Career Statistics and Analysis
• Dustin Pedroia at ESPN.com
• Dustin Pedroia - Minor League Information Courtesy of Sox Prospects

• Pat Murphy, about Pedroia Interview