Dustin Pedroia is scuffling in a big way, and the Boston Red Sox second baseman is getting a day off.
Pedroia is not in the starting lineup Thursday afternoon for the Sox’s series finale with the Toronto Blue Jays in Toronto. He’ll be replaced at second base by Brock Holt, as Holt returns from getting a rare night off Wednesday night. It will mark Holt’s first start at second base, and according to the Red Sox, Holt is the first player in franchise history to start at every position other than pitcher and catcher in the same season.
Pedroia is in one of the worst slumps of his season right now. The second baseman did collect a base hit, which has been a rarity since the All-Star break. Pedroia is hitting just .083 (2-for-24) in the team’s six games since the break. The slump has caused Pedroia’s average to drop 11 points over the last six games.
One player not in a slump right now is David Ortiz. The Boston designated hitter has turned it on in a big way, as he hit his fourth home run of the series Wednesday night. Ortiz is 5-for-14 with the four homers and eight RBIs against Toronto in the series. He’ll hit third Thursday.
Here’s the Boston lineup for Thursday’s finale.
Red Sox (47-54)
Brock Holt, 2B
Shane Victorino, RF
David Ortiz, DH
Mike Napoli, 1B
Daniel Nava, LF
Stephen Drew, SS
Xander Bogaerts, 3B
Jackie Bradley Jr., CF
Christian Vazquez, C
Rubby De La Rosa, P
Blue Jays (53-49)
Jose Reyes, SS
Melky Cabrera, LF
Jose Bautista, RF
Dioner Navarro, C
Dan Johnson, DH
Munenori Kawasaki, 3B
Juan Francisco, 1B
Ryan Goins, 2B
Anthony Gose, CF
Marcus Stroman, P
