Knuckle Curve » dustin pedroia

Dustin Pedroia and Family Get Death Threats

Stephen Kersey — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 08:23:27 +0000

In a recent interview, Dustin Pedroia of the Boston Red Sox had negative things to say about his hometown of Woodland, California. In retaliation, a Woodland-area man allegedly made death threats to the Pedroia family. The man was later caught and arrested.

Dustin Pedroia, who was the 2007 American League Rookie of the Year and the 2008 American League Most Valuable Player, said in an interview that Woodland was a “dump” and that the city “sucks”. He also said that everyone is looking to get out of town. Pedroia insists that he was misquoted.

Prior to the interview, Pedroia was a hometown hero. After the Red Sox won the 2007 World Series, Pedroia returned home as the conquering hero. Earlier this year, Pedroia’s family was in the spotlight after it was revealed that his brother is an accused child molester.

Five games into the 2009 baseball season, Pedroia isn’t off to a hot start. He’s hitting just .158 with one homer and one RBI.

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Dustin Pedroia Signs $40.5 Million Contract

Stephen Kersey — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 05:11:03 +0000

Call it an MVP bonus. A few weeks after Dustin Pedroia was named the 2008 American League Most Valuable Player, the Boston Red Sox agreed to a six-year, $40.5 million contract with the star second baseman.

Considering he has only three years of experience, this is one of the biggest contracts ever given out to a player who wasn’t arbitration eligible yet. But with his career trajectory heading north, the Red Sox thought it’d be a good time to lock Pedroia into a long-term deal.

The big years of the contract come in 2013 and 2014 when he’ll make $10 million each season. However, if he wins an MVP before those years, he’ll make $12 million each of those seasons. He also has other bonuses that could raise the overall value of the contract.

A seventh year on the deal gives the Red Sox an option to pay him $11 million in 2015 or to buy him out for under $1 million. If he stays near his current playing level, he’ll obviously be a members of the Red Sox for a long, long time.

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Dustin Pedroia Wins AL MVP Award

Stephen Kersey — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 05:32:10 +0000

Some claim Dustin Pedroia is about 5-foot-5 in real life. However, all must now admit that Pedroia is the 2008 American League Most Valuable Player.

Pedroia, the second baseman for the Boston Red Sox, handily won the award by beating out Justin Morneau of the Minnesota Twins and his teammate Kevin Youkilis. Pedroia not only was very good in the field, at the plate he was one of the most dangerous players in the AL.

He finished the season with a .326 batting average and 17 homers, 83 RBIs, 118 runs scored and 213 hits. The 25-year-old improved his numbers across the board in his second full season in the big leagues.

Morneau, the first baseman for the Minnesota Twins, also had a really good season. He finished 2008 with a .300 batting average to go with 23 homers, 129 RBIs and 97 runs scored. Fellow first baseman Youkilis had 29 homers, 115 RBI to go along with a batting average of .312.

However, when it was all said and done, the big award in the American League was won by the smallest candidate.

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American League Gold Glove Winners 2008

Stephen Kersey — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 06:23:39 +0000

Like the National League Gold Glove winners, the American League Gold Glove winners feature a lot of young faces. Apparently, the best fielders in 2008 were young players who had never won this award before. Here is a look at the 2008 AL Gold Glove award winners:

Pitcher – Mike Mussina, New York Yankees – 8th Gold Glove
Catcher – Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins – 1st Gold Glove
First Baseman – Carlos Pena, Tampa Bay Rays – 1st Gold Glove
Second Baseman – Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox – 1st Gold Glove
Shortstop – Michael Young, Texas Rangers – 1st Gold Glove
Third Baseman – Adrian Beltre, Seattle Mariners – 2nd Gold Glove
Outfielder – Ichiro Suzuki, Seattle Mariners – 8th Gold Glove
Outfielder – Torii Hunter, Los Angeles Angels – 8th Gold Glove
Outfielder – Grady Sizemore, Cleveland Indians – 2nd Gold Glove

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American League MVP Candidates – AL MVP 2008

Stephen Kersey — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 13:22:23 +0000

The Most Valuable Player award in the American League will no doubt be a much talked about race. A number of players can make a case for themselves, however there are a few players in the American League that stand out above the rest. Here are our top AL MVP candidates.

5. Carlos Quentin, Chicago White Sox
Carlos Quentin had a rule shot at this award until he broke his hand in a freak incident. After fouling off a pitch, Quentin hit his bat with his wrist and ended up breaking his wrist — and his chance at the AL MVP.

4. Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees
Each and every season, you can go ahead and pen Alex Rodriguez’s name as a candidate for the American League MVP. This year his stats are once again very good and he’s especially hot as of late, but he doesn’t quite have the numbers this year to be a legit contender.

3. Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins
Not only are Justin Morneau’s numbers very good, he’s on a winning team that isn’t supposed to be a playoff contender. Morneau still has a shot at this award but he’ll need a red hot finish to the season and for the Twins to advance to the postseason.

2. Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox
Many league pundits are leaning toward Dustin Pedroai as AL MVP and while he’s not a bad candidate, I don’t quite have him on top of the pile. However, there is no question that without Pedroai, the Red Sox would be in a world of hurt.

1. Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers
The Josh Hamilton story is in need of a storybook ending — and the American League Most Valuable Player award certainly can put a ribbon on his breakthrough season. Hamilton has had the best stats for almost the entire season. The Rangers aren’t winning much but Hamilton has led Texas to a better than expected finish.

Can Josh Hamilton end his season with the 2008 AL MVP award?

Photo: Newscom

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