Most Valuable Pedroia

Photo taken at Safeco Field, Seattle, June 2007

Shaking off all the political stuff...

Dustin Pedroia is the hottest guy on the Red Sox. And I don't mean that in the usual way! He is doing it all right now - hitting, fielding, and inspiring the team. He's so hot right now, even Ozzie Guillen was dissing him this weekend. Called him a jockey! And then said he wished the Sox had traded Pedie instead of Manny.

If you look at the League Leaders, Pedie leads in hits (185), runs (107), and batting average (.327). He's tied for third with 42 doubles. And he's doing it all now, when we need him most during the waning days of the season. Some nights, it feels like he's carrying the whole team on that little 5'6" frame. The excitement is contagious. Big Papi is talking about how Pedie makes it fun to play, makes him happy to come to the park. Last night, Paul Byrd devoted part of his post-game press conference to pay tribute to Pedie's play.

I'm not sure he's a viable candidate for league MVP, but he sure is the team MVP right now.

Editing to add:

This awesome picture by Allan Vega:
El Tiante!