As Steve told you earlier this afternoon, Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia has won his first Gold Glove Award which is presented annually by Rawlings. Kevin Youkilis, who won the Gold Glove last year at first base, did not repeat at first base this season.
I really didn’t think about it,” he said of winning the award. “I take pride in my defense, it’s a huge part of my game. In fact, my biggest (priority) is defense. I need to be extremely important to our pitching staff. I put in a ton of time with Luis Alicea and Alex Cora from Day One. It’s only my second year playing second base. I took extra ground balls every single day and it definitely paid off.”
“I got a lot faster in the offseason,” he said. “I put in the time, did all the cardio workouts, speed work, and agility. That really paid off where my range got a lot better and my arm strength got better. I’m not the biggest guy in the world but I can make up with effort in the offseason.”
As for his thoughts on the Red Sox deciding not renew the contract of Alicea, Pedroia would only say, “He’s helped me out a ton. I definitely wouldn’t be a Gold Glove winner if he wasn’t part of it.”
Here’s the full list of Gold Glove winners in the American League:
- Catcher – Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins (1st Gold Glove)
- First Base – Carlos Peña, Tampa Bay Rays (1st Gold Glove)
- Second Base – Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox (1st Gold Glove)
- Shortstop – Michael Young, Texas Rangers (1st Gold Glove)
- Third Base – Adrian Beltre, Seattle Mariners (2nd Gold Glove)
- Outfield – Ichiro Suzuki, Seattle Mariners (8th Gold Glove)
- Outfield – Torii Hunter, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (8th Gold Glove)
- Outfield – Grady Sizemore, Cleveland Indians (2nd Gold Glove)
- Pitcher – Mike Mussina, New York Yankees (7th Gold Glove)
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