Fire sale incoming: Pedroia is wearing flameproof jersey
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| Photograph by Peter Yang |
Ryan MacLeod (RyanMacLeod15)
Contributing Writer
I have the utmost respect for Jim Monaghan, but earlier today he posted an article about why the Red Sox should trade Dustin Pedroia. You can read his article by clicking here. This is argument on why Pedroia should not, and can not be traded.
Three months into the 2015 season fans already know that this year is one for the history books, but not the books that end with parades down Boylston St. on the tops of duckboats. This history book ends in flames, a new manager and general manager, and the destruction of a Red Sox team that was full of promise at the beginning of the season. On paper the 2015 Red Sox were not only contenders for the AL East crown, but they were also contenders to win the American League Pennant.
On June 12th this team is the 27-36 and are 7 games out of the AL East. This "highly touted offense" is 24th in runs scored, 19th in average and 19th in total bases. The pitching staff is even worse. They rank 29th in ERA, 26th in win percentage and is tied for 21st in WHIP.
This is a team that is marooned in mediocracy. The standard that other teams have held themselves to is not there, there are rumors that some players have already "checked out" of this season. There is an exception to this and that exception is Dustin Pedroia. Not only is Pedroia a fan favorite and a player that has been with the Red Sox his entire career, but he one of the few players that plays for the love of the game and refuses to quit. That mentality comes around only once in a while and letting that attitude go would be the worst mistake the Red Sox front office has done in the last 10 years.
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| Photograph by Jed Jacobsohn Getty Images |
Dustin Pedroia is not the problem with this team, he may in fact be the solution. David Ortiz has long been the leader in the clubhouse but with his recent struggles at the plate it appears that he has started to lose that role. Pedroia will give it his all every single time he steps onto the diamond, and this has been evident in the month of June when he has been hitting .391 and raising his seasons batting average .019 points in only 12 games.
Pedroia is the cornerstone of a franchise, and if he were to be put on the trading block there would be a number of suiters that lined up a bid for him. The problem is that Pedroia is untradeable. He is this generations Johnny Pesky or Carl Yastrzemski, a Boston Red Sox through and through. You can't just replace that dedication, the will to win, or the raw talent that Pedroia has.
Plus, if he is traded who replaces Pedroia? Mookie Betts? Sure he is a natural second baseman but he only played 40 games at the position before he was transitioned to become an outfielder at the AA level and 6 games at second in AAA. While playing second at the AA level he had a fielding percentage of .980 with 4 errors. In AAA he had a fielding percentage of .964 with one error but that was only in six games. The sample size is way to small to determine if he could play second base at the major league level.
Pedroia also offers the availability for the team to improve around him due to his salary. He is similar to Tom Brady with his salary in the fact that he took less money that he could have to make sure the team gets better. Pedroia is the 4th highest paid second baseman in the majors, but his salary is only $12.5 million. Pedroia is the 77th highest paid player in the Major Leagues, and is the sixth highest on the Red Sox.
Pedroia helps this team more in the future than a trade this season does. He has done everything right for this team. He has given them everything that he has for the last nine seasons. Its just wrong to think that because we could get something for him means that we should get something for him.
What are your thoughts on Pedroia? Leave your comments below or give me a follow and tweet me by clicking here.
