Dustin Luis Pedroia (born August 17, 1983, in Woodland, California) is a Major League Baseball second baseman for the Boston Red Sox. During his brief career in the majors, Pedroia has won several awards, including the 2007 AL Rookie of the Year award and the 2008 AL MVP. He also won a Silver Slugger as a second baseman, and was second overall in the AL in batting average in 2008.

Pedroia attended Woodland High School in Woodland, California, where he graduated with honors. Pedroia batted .445 his senior year, and was chosen as his league’s most valuable player.

Pedroia went to Arizona State University, where he was teammates with current Texas Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler. In three years at ASU, Pedroia never hit below .347, and had a career average of .384, starting all 185 games. Furthermore, to help ASU recruit better pitchers, Pedroia relinquished the last two years of his athletic scholarship.[3]

Pedroia was drafted by the Red Sox in the second round of the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft, with the 65th pick overall. In two years in the minors (2004–06), Pedroia batted .308 while playing second base and shortstop.

Pedroia collected his first Major League hit in his first game in the majors, on August 22, 2006, against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Pedroia earned his first major league home run on September 9, 2006, against Kansas City Royals pitcher Luke Hudson.

Pedroia became the regular second baseman for the Sox in 2007. His defense in 2007 was solid, with six errors and a fielding percentage of .990. Pedroia won the AL Rookie of the Year award, and was selected to the 2007 Topps Major League Rookie All-Star Team.

In 2008, Pedroia ended the season with a .326 average with 17 home runs, 83 RBIs, and 20 stolen bases. He was tied for the MLB lead in hits with 213 and led the league in doubles (54), while leading the AL in runs scored (118), making him the first player to lead all three of those categories in the same season since Cal Ripken in 1983. Pedroia came in second in the AL in batting average (.326) behind Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer (.328), fourth in the AL in total bases (322), and seventh in the AL in extra-base hits (73). His 20 stolen bases in 21 attempts helped Pedroia lead MLB in stolen base percentage (.952). With only 6 errors in 773 plays at second base, Pedroia was second in the AL in fielding percentage by a second baseman (.992), behind Mark Ellis (.993, OAK), who had almost 200 fewer total chances.
Following the season, Pedroia won the 2008 AL MVP (the first by an American League second baseman since Nellie Fox in 1959) as well as the AL Gold Glove and Silver Slugger award for second base. He is the 10th player in the history of the Red Sox to capture the AL MVP and the 8th player in AL history to win the MVP, Gold Glove, and Silver Slugger awards in the same season. Pedroia became only the third player in MLB history to win Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player in consecutive seasons (others have won both in the same season) joining Cal Ripken Jr. and Ryan Howard.

Awards and Distinctions:
2004 First-Team Baseball America and USA Today All-American
2003 Pac-10 Co-Player of the Year
2003 NCAA Defensive Player of the Year
2005 Red Sox Minor League Offensive Player of the Year
2007 Players Choice American League Outstanding Rookie
2007 World Series Champion (Boston Red Sox)
2007 American League Rookie of the Year
2008 Voted into his first All-Star game
2008 AL Gold Glove Winner
2008 AL Silver Slugger award
2008 American League Most Valuable Player Award