Dustin Pedroia Gives Incredibly Glum Update About His Rehab
By Sean Facey
It might be time for the Red Sox and their fans to stop holding out hope for a return from franchise favorite Dustin Pedroia.
If they want him to maintain a high quality of life, that is.
The beleaguered second baseman didn't have anything positive to say about his recovery from knee surgery, except to reiterate that things just kept getting worse prior to his surgery earlier this month. He'll be on crutches for two weeks before he starts a grueling 12-week strengthening program.
Pedroia will be on crutches for two more weeks then start a 12-week strengthening program. Will then assess future from there.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) August 27, 2019
Said knee kept getting worse and worse when he went home, leading to the surgery.
It's the latest chapter in a depressing saga for Pedroia. He's been battling with injuries pretty much non-stop for three years now. Since the start of 2017, he's appeared in just 114 games, nine of which have come in the past two years, while posting a subpar 92 OPS+.
His left knee has been shredded to bits and pieces ever since he went down on a slide from Manny Machado. The four-time All-Star has been stuck in a brutal cycle of undergoing surgery, rehabbing and then experiencing a setback.
Pedroia didn’t close the door on playing again but admitted quality of life is coming first at this time. He said he could barely throw BP to his kids at home without feeling pain.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) August 27, 2019
He's a grinder at heart, but the truth of the matter is that his best days are well behind him. There have been calls for him to retire for some time now, and it might be time for him to heed that advice.
Dustin Pedroia is not ruling out playing again. But he acknowledged his last surgery was a major one to improve the quality of his life and he will eventually need a full replacement.
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) August 27, 2019
There's little chance that he'll ever be able to recapture the form that helped him win MVP in 2008, or even reach the caliber of play that helped him bat .318 in 2016. He's now 36 years old and staring another lengthy recovery process right in the face.
The choice is all his, and whatever he decides to do, he deserves respect and understanding. With that being said, the odds are decidedly against him.