Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who exited Wednesday’s game against the Yankees after feeling discomfort in his surgically repaired left knee, remained in New York to meet with doctors Thursday, according to multiple media reports.
Pedroia left the eventual 5-3 loss after he flew out in his only at-bat in the top of the second inning. Eduardo Nunez replaced him at second base.
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“He felt something weird in his knee,” manager Alex Cora told reporters afterward. “He finished the at-bat and came up to me, like, ‘Hey man, it didn’t feel right there.’ I decided to take him out.”
Pedroia, who is sick, left Yankee Stadium before the end of the game. As the team heads to Tampa to face the Rays, Pedroia will undergo tests on the knee in New York to offer a prognosis, though Cora said his star — who only recently returned to the lineup because of the knee — left the manager concerned.
“He was down,” Cora said. “I haven’t seen him like that. Hopefully, it’s nothing serious and something where he just got scared.”
It's more bad news for a Red Sox team (6-13) that already has seen plenty of bad in 2019.
The negative 42 run differential for #Redsox now worst by a World Series champion through 19 games in #MLB history
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) April 18, 2019
If Pedroia winds up back on the injured list, the struggling Red Sox are facing considerable problems as second base.
Although he replaced Pedroia on Wednesday, Nunez is batting back tightness. Brock Holt (scratched cornea), who the team had hoped would come off the injured list this weekend, reported not seeing well in a game Wednesday at Triple-A Pawtucket and won't be ready, MassLive.com reported. Blake Swihart, who was capable of playing second in a pinch, was designated for assignment earlier in the week.
Things were so bad Monday that catcher Christian Vazquez, who played 4 2/3 innings at second base for Single-A Greenville in 2010, was forced to play the position with a borrowed infielder's glove.
Cora said he would consider internal options from Pawtucket, including Tzu-Wei Lin, Michael Chavis and Tony Renda.
Pedroia has experienced issues with the knee since 2017 and missed all but three games in 2018 after undergoing cartilage restoration surgery.
He made his 2019 debut in Boston's home opener last week. A longtime fan favorite, he is just 2-for-20 with one RBI in the early going, starting four games at second base (counting Wednesday's short appearance) and two others at designated hitter.
