thought I'd mention that there might be an announcement tonight re the promotion of Pedroia to Boston, although nothing has been said of yet...just went down between games and Pedie said he hadn't heard anything, although he was pulled from the first game after two at bats at DH...iand he's not in the lineup for game two either....f I hear anything, I'll chime in....

Very interesting and thanks again, Dan the Man!

the pleasure is mine

Thanks for the info....Considering AGon has been out of the lineup with a hurt back I bet he is most likely headed for the DL. So this would make sense. It will be nice to see what Pedroia can do.

It's official...Pedroia going up...now if he can just get to Anaheim from here (Ottawa)...oh, and be sure and read tomorrow's Providence Journal.....

Cool beans, Dan!

Thanks for all the info, Dan.

Thanks for providing the news!

I'm going to move this to the "Red Sox On the Field" forum.

Anni

That's the best news I've heard since last Thursday. Welcome to the show Dustin. Make it impossible for them to send you back to Pawtucket.

told him, "I don't want to see you back here".....

Great, another rookie to screw up this season

C'mon, Pedro. Show those bums some life and passion for the game!

Thanks for breaking the news here first Dan

projo.com

EDIT - any word on what number he'll be wearing?

This is the best news of the last several days as far as the Red Sox go. I'll have my MLB-EI fired up.

YES! FINALLY!

That is good news. Is it too much to hope for a brand spanking new rookie to hit with RISP?

Thank you. Finally some good news.

Good like to Dustin!

It seems like the Red Sox are looking into the future already. Good news.

About time they called him up with this sinking ship.

So, is Gonzo going to the DL? Where is the roster spot coming from?

Rotoworld is speculating that Gozo will go to the DL, but nothing's been done yet. I suspect the Sox won't make a move until they know that Pedroia can play tonight. Getting from Ottawa to LA is probably not the easiest connection to make! I suspect he may have had to fly to Toronto and make a connection from there.

Looks like there are direct flights from Ottawa to LAX. So he should get there. There is one at 6:30 AM that arrives at LAX at 11:30 AM.

Sweet. Then he won't need the 'Belli escort to the park.

Let us see what Dustin can do. Maybe a little youthful excitement might be the kick to the pants this group needs...

Little is right

A huge fire can be started with just a small spark....Good luck and kick A$$.

This also makes him eligible for the post season roster since he is there before Sept. 1.

That is right everyone get it in your heads this team is going to the playoffs.

I'm excited to see Pedroia play. Saw him a couple times in Portland but it'll be nice to see whose projections were right. I'm going to sit back and enjoy the future, since there aren't any other options. Let's go DP.

It's finally good to see what Dustin can do in the bigs.

That said.

Let's make sure our expectations are tempered.

I don't want to see him hitting .230 and everyone throws him under the bus like Hansen.

I want to see Dustin in the field.. will he be able to handle short stop?

I for one belive he can, he was an excellent shortstop in college. We'll have to see if he has the range and arm to pull it off. If Pedroia is a viable SS solution then we have a lot more flexibility when it's time to build the roster.

I wouldn't be concerned, there's no room under the bus right now. If we tried, he'd just bounce off the pile of bodies and end up on the breakdown lane. And when's the last time you heard the expression "thrown to the breakdown lane?" You haven't. And that's why Dustin's gonna be great.

There, flawless logic.

Hall of Fame material here. Classic.


It'll be nice to see what he can do. Since I live outside the New England area this is going to be my first chance to see him play.

finally a good move by the FO
hopefully DP gives this team a spark, at this point they should try anything and everything to get this team started up again

DP should've been starting for this team on Opening Day '05. So I say good on ya!

The run starts tonight.

I have a question that I kno the answer to normally, but since I haven't motivated myself yet I can't remember.

Okay, so we called up Dustin. Does that mean we just started his clock a full year faster just so we could call him up now rather than on September 1 when rosters expend? If so then that's dumb. If not then I'm dumb.

From what I've seen he looks like he can be a real solid player for this team. He has a bit more gap power than I expected when looking at him. Hopefully he can come in and help right off. Nice to see a prospect come and play tho.

I don't think this 1 week is going to make a big difference, especially if he is in the majors continuously from here on out. After 2006, he'll be between 0 and 1 year of service time. After '07, between 1 and 2. After '08, between 2 and 3 (which might make him a Super Two, depending on performance). After '09, between 3 and 4, which makes him arb-eligible.

If he gets sent down for more than a month, but less than a month and a week, then we might have an issue. That is, if this one week means the difference between having more than 2 full years' service time and having less than 2 full years', we've got problems. (Same goes for 3 and 4, with arbitration, and for free agency down the line.)

just when i never want to watch that train wreck of a team again, they give me a reason. damn them.

Hasnt Pedroia been playing 2B all year or has he been at SS? Thats the only thing taht worries me, if hes been playing both then thats fantastic. I am looking forward to finally seeing him up

He's been playing at both positions regularly, and even played a few games at third after Lowell hurt his foot.

This team shouldn't be worried about arbitration status with these players. That kind of thinking turns you into the D'Rays, and is in part what has led to the 2006 disaster. If you find a player that can perform on the big stage that is Boston, pay the man! The Sox already have enough "bargains" in Coco Crisp and Matt Clement. Profits were $14.5 million in 2004. With over a 15% ticket price increase over the last two seasons and over 1500 seats added and much more revenue in terms of Ads/TV/marketing, these fat cats need to stop worrying about the luxury tax more than winning. If the 49% debt load on this team is too heavy a burden due to rising interest rates, then bring in Karp and O'Donnell as partners with a voice. It is obvious that Theo's hands were tied at the trading deadline due to financial considerations, some of which were of his own devices-see Cement shoes and Rent-A-Wreck as exhibits A and B. The Trio got lucky in 2004, winning a title with 16 of 25 on the roster being Dan Duquette's/John Harrington's players. No more excuses. The honeymoon is over.

Wow both positions? Thats fantastic. I still think...maybe because he was a college 2B right? That he would be best fit there next year, but I am now at ease of him being able to handle the SS duties for the Sox

While I can't argue with your larger point (September call-ups don't start the clock, if all was correct after the dust settled last year in regards to Hanley):

Alex Gonzalaz is going on the DL. Which means unless you want Willie Harris up here again, we need a MI. And that's why Dustin is now on the Big Club.

He played shortstop exclusively/almost exclusively in college, and won some "best defensive player" award while doing so. The reason he's projected as a 2b in the bigs is because he as a relatively pedestrian arm for a big league shortstop.

Every team in the majors should be worried about arbitration status. Every financial decision a team makes has an impact on how much money will be available for player salaries. When dealing with a young player, I'd like to see a FO weigh the following:

1. How much will the guy help the Major League club?
2. How will this impact his development?
3. How much will it cost us, now and in the future.

For #1, Dustin is certainly the best option for this roster spot. In fact, I'd personally rate him as the best option to start at short, but I've been over that. As a backup MI, he won't help the team all that much; as a starter I think he'd help a bit.

For #2, well, he's ready. And with minor league ball ending soon, he is going to come up. He needs the seasoning, and he's likely to learn a lot from playing in the majors. No problem here.

For #3, it comes down to whether it's going to bring his free agency on one year early. I don't think it will, but it COULD. Let's say it DOES start his clock one year early... we're trading one year of "Dustin in 6 years" for 1 year of "Dustin now." Is that worth the benefits outlined above? Consider that "Dustin in 6 years" will probably be at his career best, while now he'll likely be at his career worst (unless he hangs on too long).

That's for the baseball people to decide. But if they're NOT weighing these decisions, they're shirking their duties to do the best possible for the Sox. For example, Bonderman looks all well and good now, but if the Tigers had kept him in the minors 2 more years they'd have him locked up 'til he's in his late 20s. I guarantee you in 3 years when he bolts for New York they'll wish they had him locked up for 2 more years... but they won't, because of a decision they made back in '03. Considering the things I outlined above, this decision probably wasn't too smart. #1, he didn't help the team all that much when he was putting up a 5.5 ERA for a team going nowhere. #2, he developed fine, but could very well have done so in the minors as well. All in all, there was no reason to bring him up, and it's going to hurt them in a couple of years.

Anyway, I like Dustin on the big club now, as I've made obvious in the past. He can help us, thus he'll be worth the cost down the line.

Rough (not park-adjusted) MLEs based on his year thus far in AAA:

BB:K OBP SLG AVG
1.26 .353 .337 .253

Given that most of his slugging is generated by doubles (30 in 423 ABs) his slugging could actually be a bit higher. The average seems like a big drop from his AAA .305, especially in light of his strike zone command and his slow start, but his ~.320 BABIP might not be sustainable in the bigs either.

As a hopeful fan I will simply assume he does better, but these should be a reasonable starting point. There are probably other sets of MLEs out there too which I'd be interested in seeing. I used the Baseball Notebook breakdown for simplicty/speed.

He was a college SS. The Sox switched him to 2B due to Hanley being at SS, but since Hanley was traded Pedoria has been playing both positions.

From what I read, most people project him as a 2B in the end, but that he should be solid at SS.

This is great news. I've seen him a few times this year (right after he came back from his injury in Spring Training) & was pretty impressed with him at the plate. Don't remember what I saw of him in the field.

Good luck Dustin.

I am going to all three Angels games, and was actually kind of dreading it, since I believe the bitt-kicking is only going to continue for the time being. Getting to see Pedroia play is making it worth the hour+ drive each way. Hope he does well, otherwise the drive home may feel even longer!

Good luck, DP.

Is he officially in the lineup tonight?

update from boston.com

Pedroia to play?



Dustin Pedroia should be in Anaheim, Calif., tonight with the Red Sox, with Alex Gonzalez expected to go on the disabled list with a Grade 1 oblique strain. Pedroia could make his major league debut as soon as tonight, according to a source familiar with the situation.


The official lineup should be out around 9 pm. I'll post it in the game thread as soon as it shows up.

AVG .270 | HR 11 | RBI 38 | OBP .338 | SLG .424

What are the chances that he puts up numbers comparable to these, (in a full season of course) ?

Not random numbers. They are what Hanley has put up this year. I forget, is Dustin projected to be a better player than Hanley ?

Hanley's got the higher ceiling of the two, but is considered to be more raw. Though, he's had a pretty good rookie season.