HEADLINE

Red Sox place Pedroia (knee) on 60-day IL

Field Level Media

February 23, 2020 at 8:23 pm.

The Boston Red Sox placed second baseman Dustin Pedroia on the 60-day injured list on Sunday, thwarting the former Most Valuable Player’s most recent attempt to come back from a knee injury.

In a corresponding move, the Red Sox claimed right-hander Phillips Valdez off waivers from the Seattle Mariners and added him to the 40-man roster.

Pedroia did not report to spring training in Fort Myers, Fla., with the rest of the team earlier this month because of the continuing soreness in his left knee.

“He’s still sore,” interim manager Ron Roenicke told reporters 10 days ago. “The knee is still sore. The setback is still there. … He’s going to try to evaluate what happens here. He’s going to continue to talk to the people in Arizona and (trainer) Brad (Pearson) to figure out what the next step is and where he goes from it.”

Pedroia, a four-time All-Star, four-time Gold Glove winner and 2008 American League MVP, has only played in nine games over the past two seasons. He is a career .299 hitter with 140 home runs, 394 doubles and 725 RBIs in 1,512 games, all with the Red Sox. He played an integral role in Boston’s World Series titles in 2007, when he was voted AL Rookie of the Year, and 2013.

Pedroia has undergone multiple surgeries to restore the cartilage and remove scar tissue since originally injuring his knee in 2017. He had joint preservation surgery last August.

Valdez, 28, made his major league debut last season with the Texas Rangers and had a 3.94 ERA in 16 innings spread over 11 relief appearances. He walked nine, struck out 18 and gave up three home runs. In November, the Mariners claimed him off waivers from the Rangers.

The Dominican Republic native was signed by the Cleveland Indians in 2008 and is 38-34 with 10 saves and a 3.76 ERA in 226 games (89 starts) for the Indians (2009-10), Washington Nationals (2012-18) and Rangers (2019) farm systems. He struck out 535 batters and walked 279 in those stops.