Second baseman Dustin Pedroia won’t be on the Boston Red Sox’ roster for the Opening Day and will instead begin the 2019 MLB season on the injured list while recovering from chronic left knee injury. This was confirmed by Red Sox’ manager Alex Cora on Monday who added that there isn’t a timetable for Pedroia’s return at the moment.
“No setbacks. Nothing out of the ordinary,” – Cora said. “We feel we need more time. He looks, actually, really good. But we do feel if we err on the safe side, it’s going to be a lot better.”
Pedroia, who missed the most of 2018 MLB season, on the other hand, said that he feels “ready for Opening Day” but understands why Boston is taking the conservative approach.
“They have had to hold me back. I’m ready for Opening Day,” – Pedroia told MLB.com. “It’s just they’re scared. No one has ever come back from something like this. They want me to make sure I follow the right steps to do that and make sure everyone is 100 percent confident that when I come back, I come back and stay back and not have any issues.”
Dustin Pedroia underwent surgery on his knee for a complete cartilage restoration in 2017 and managed to come back in 2018 for three games before being put back on the disabled list with knee inflammation.
Pedroia spent his entire MLB career with the Red Sox, with whom he has two World Series titles. During his time in Boston, he also managed to earn four All-Star appearances while being named AL MVP in 2008.
