Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox Legend, Retires From MLB

Dustin Pedroia is ending his baseball career. On Monday, the 37-year old announced his retirement from MLB after spending 14 seasons with the Boston Red Sox. He had an impressive career, winning two World Series and winning the AL MVP award in 2008.

“The Boston Red Sox, to me, it means everything,” Pedroia said, as reported by MLB.com. “I started my family there; my kids were born in Boston. Every day I woke up and looked to find a way to help our team win a baseball game, and I got to do it in front of the best fans in the best city.” Pedroia was drafted by the Red Sox in 2004 and would play in 1,512 games from 2006-2019. He finished his career with 1,805 hits, 140 home runs, 725 RBIs and 922 runs with a .299 batting average.

“The Boston Red Sox, to me, it means everything,” Pedroia said. “I started my family there; my kids were born in Boston. Every day I woke up and looked to find a way to help our team win a baseball game, and I got to do it in front of the best fans in the best city.” At the end of his career, Pedroia was dealing with a knee injury, which had led to him not playing since the 2019 season. He went on to say he “can’t run anymore” and it “wasn’t physically possible for me to continue to play baseball with a partial knee replacement.”

In his MVP season, Pedroia recorded 213 hits 17 home runs, 83 RBIs 118 runs and a .326 batting average. In 2017, the California native won AL Rookie of the Year after tallying 165 hits, eight home runs and 50 RBIs in 139 games. He was also a standout defensive player, winning four Gold Gloves for his work on second base.

“Dustin is so much more than his American League Most Valuable Player award, his All-Star Game selections, and the Gold Gloves he amassed throughout his impressive 17-year career in our organization,” Red Sox principal owner John Henry said in a statement. He played the game he loves in service to our club, its principles and in pursuit of championships.”