Dustin Pedroia Undergoes Left Knee Surgery, Expected To Return In 7 Months
BOSTON (CBS) -- After weighing his options since the season ended, Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia went under the knife on Wednesday.
Pedroia underwent a cartilage restoration procedure in his balky left knee and is not expected to return to game action for approximately seven months, the Red Sox announced on Wednesday. That means he will miss the first two months of the season, returning sometime in late May.
The knee bothered him for much of the 2017 season, and he met with several specialists after Boston's season ended two weeks ago at the hands of the Houston Astros in the ALDS to determine the best course of action.
Pedroia also had left knee surgery following the 2016 season, but it clearly did not fix the issue. It didn't help that he took a spike from Baltimore's Manny Machado to his left knee in late April, causing Pedroia to miss the next three games.
The 34-year-old made two trips to the disabled list and was limited to 105 games in 2017 due to various knee issues. He still hit .293 and collected 119 hits but his defense suffered the most, with his defensive WAR dropping from 1.8 in 2016 to -0.2 in 2017.
Pedroia has four years and $56 million left on his current contract with the Red Sox. He's the fourth member of the Red Sox to undergo surgery this offseason, joining first baseman/DH Hanley Ramirez, starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez and reliever Robby Scott.
