FORT MYERS, Fla. — After walking and scoring in his first at-bat since last August, Dustin Pedroia came up again in the second inning Saturday against Boston College and hit a hard grounder up the middle that seemed to be ticketed for center field.
Boston College second baseman Anthony Melchionda made a nice diving stop, got to his feet and fired to first.
Knowing it would be a close play, Pedroia saw a chance for an early test.
"I haven't run one out in awhile. I felt good," Pedroia said after Boston's 6-0 win over the Eagles. "I didn't see him catch it because the pitcher was kind of in the way. Once I saw that I was like, hey, I better run hard, so, let's do it.
"Yeah, I haven't done that in a long time. It felt fine. It felt good. I'm not playing tomorrow so I'll see how I feel tomorrow and then come back out the next day."
Pedroia broke his left foot last June when he fouled a ball off of it in a game at San Francisco. He returned for two games in August, but the foot needed more time to heal so he shut it down. Although he's been a full participant in workouts all spring, it's impossible to simulate moments such as that mad dash to first.
"I wasn't out there for very long, but I felt good," Pedroia said. "My foot felt good. My timing [is off] but that takes time. Basically, I felt great."
Manager Terry Francona said that Pedroia will probably get into a game every other day for the time being. Not that there are any concerns that Pedroia could handle an increased workload, it's simply a prudent approach for a guy who missed so much time.
"He's been running, he's been doing everything fine," Francona said. "I hit him groundballs every morning and he moves around too well to not feel good."
Aside from cross-town bus rides to play the Minnesota Twins, the Red Sox do not have an actual road trip until they visit the Yankees in Tampa on Friday. Pedroia may be held back on the first few excursions, just to allow him to ease into the routine.
For now, Pedroia is pleased with not only getting a chance to really run one out, but simply to share a field with his teammates.
"It's great. Everyone's excited, too," he said. "We haven't been out there in awhile. Together, too. It's going to be fun. We're all pumped up about it."
For the time being, the 2008 American League Most Valuable Player will continue to undergo one-hour strengthening exercises on the foot on a daily basis. It is standard procedure and something he may continue with well into the season.
