Dustin Pedroia Shrugs Off Tweaked Ankle Against Nationals, Recent Slump From the Past Week

by abournenesn

Jun 9, 2012

Dustin Pedroia Shrugs Off Tweaked Ankle Against Nationals, Recent Slump From the Past WeekBOSTON — Dustin Pedroia is mired in a slight slump.

Before returning from a torn adductor muscle in his thumb, the Red Sox second baseman anticipated his timing would be off. But Pedroia likely didn't expect to go 2-for-18 through his first four games.

After Saturday's 4-2 loss against the Nationals, Pedroia didn't sweat his struggles one iota.

"I feel all right," Pedroia said. "My timing's still a little off. I'm a little late on the heaters and a little early on offspeed pitches. I'll have one at-bat where it clicks and take off."

"The last few days I've hit the ball actually pretty good. [On Saturday], I really didn't. But I've got to start finding a way to get on base and help us score runs."

Heading into Saturday, Pedroia merely notched one hit. But he also emphasized that his thumb — and the customized splint that protects it — weren't affecting his swing in his recent stretch against the Orioles and Nationals.

Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine cited the string of successful pitchers, from Stephen Strasburg to Gio Gonzalez, for Pedroia's silent week.

"He's got great effort and I think they're pitching him really tough," Valentine said. "He hasn't gotten a lot of great pitches to hit and the ones that he's gotten his timing has just been off a little."

Pedroia almost endured another bump, however. In the sixth inning, he stepped on Washington first baseman Adam LaRoche's foot while crossing the bag and tweaked his ankle in the process.

But like his slump, the 28-year-old doesn't expect any issues with his ankle moving forward.

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