Dustin Pedroia At Peace Without Proper On-Field Send-Off From Red Sox

Dustin Pedroia is calling it a career, and he won’t get the send-off many veteran Major League Baseball players receive during their final season.

The second baseman officially announced his retirement Monday after 14 seasons with the Boston Red Sox. He earned four All-Star nods, four Gold Glove awards and two World Series champions during that span.

Unfortunately, Pedroia will not get the typical send-off veterans receive during their final season in the league. But Pedroia is at peace with this decision.

“Gosh, yeah. I mean, obviously, I’d love to play,” Pedroia told reporters Monday during a video press conference, via the team. “I’d love to put the uniform on and be able to play. You’ve got to understand, (Red Sox) fans are the best fans ever. I mean, on a Tuesday night or whatever, there’s 37,000 people that are going crazy (at Fenway Park). And I got a chance to do that for as long as I did. You know? To do it one more time, I mean, yeah of course. I would do anything to have that opportunity. But I can’t. I can’t run. And that part will always hurt me is that, you know, I wish I had more time. But I don’t regret anything. So it is what it is. I’m OK. Now, I just have to have everything that I’ve learned and built up and all the energy I have, I have to give it to other people now. … I’m OK.”

Pedroia’s presence certainly will be missed.