BOSTON — The buzz surrounding Dustin Pedroia's all-around effort Monday night was still there when the Red Sox arrived at Fenway Park on Tuesday.
There was Pedroia, one of the first guys in the batting cage at 3:00 p.m. And there was his manager, still heaping praise on his star second baseman, who won a 13-pitch battle with Jered Weaver to give the Red Sox a lead they would not lose, and stood out once again in the field.
Terry Francona was asked if he watched a replay of the game-turning at-bat in the bottom of the fifth, which resulted in a go-ahead two-run single. He had not, but was supremely impressed seeing it live. Even if he wasn't, the chirpy Pedroia wouldn't let it get away.
"He told me about it for 20 minutes, so I didn't need to watch it," Francona joked Tuesday afternoon.
In all seriousness, the Boston manager is beginning to see performances like this as commonplace.
"I'm so used to it," he said. "[Weaver] is a guy he didn't have much success against. He took some swings that were some really tough pitches. He just managed to get a piece of it or foul it off his foot, and then you get a pitch he can reach."
That foul off the foot, the same one Pedroia broke last year, caused him to limp around for a few seconds. It also offered up a reminder that he had yet to take a game off this season. When Francona thought about sitting Pedroia a few days ago, he was scolded by the second baseman.
"He said he was going to kill me. I think that's what he said. There was an adjective in front of it," Francona said before discussing how easy it is to be talked into playing the guy. "He's a really good player. Sometimes we talk about [Jason Varitek] not getting hits but winning the game. This guy impacts the game all over the field."
There will be a day off for Pedroia in the near future. There may also be a "fight" before it happens, emblematic of the one Pedroia put forth against Weaver. Simply put, Pedroia will do everything he can to get his way, and the Red Sox love him for it.
"I know he's really talented, I just think so much of it is will with him," Francona said. "It's just will."
