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"I never thought I would walk a jockey." That was White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen's assessment of the intentional walk he issued to Boston's impromptu cleanup hitter Dustin Pedroia in a game on August 30. Pedroia had just wrapped up his second consecutive 4 for 4 game against the White Sox as Boston's first second baseman to bat cleanup in half a century. The American League's batting average leader has been a huge catalyst in the Boston Red Sox's 2008 playoff run and his heroic efforts are garnering unlikely MVP consideration.

Through college and the minor leagues, Pedroia developed a reputation for enormous confidence on a little guy. At 5-foot-6 and 160 pounds, everyone laughed it off because of his size, but his performance always backed him up. His old college coach, Pat Murphy of Arizona State, probably best summed up the enigma that is Dustin Pedroia. "Here's our first meeting...Pedroia walks by, flexes and then says, Hey Murph, check out these guns, man.' The guy has the biceps of a six-year-old, he has no business wearing a shirt with cut-off sleeves and I'm getting blinded by the shine from the head of a college freshman that's going bald; then he just proceeded to go out and make every play." (1)

To this day, before batting practice, Pedroia tells teammates to put on sunglasses to prepare for the "laser show." His performance makes it less of a punch line and more of a sound recommendation. Pedroia is second in the AL in doubles with 44 while leading the league with 191 hits, 110 runs, and a .333 average. He has also slugged out 17 home runs, 76 runs batted in, and a .883 OPS. He does all this with an amazing contact rate; he has struck out just 47 times in 574 at-bats.

For a guy who isn't credited for speed, Pedroia has stolen 17 bases while being caught only once. He has a legitimate chance at joining the 20-20 club for home runs and steals while winning a batting title in just his second year in the majors. Pedroia has become a human hitting streak, avoiding back-to-back hitless games since early June. And on top of everything else, he's playing elite defense at second base, a historically defense-first/offense-second position.

At a time when the Red Sox are dealing with injuries to several key players (J.D. Drew, Mike Lowell, Josh Beckett, Kevin Youkilis, Sean Casey), Pedroia is playing the best baseball of his life. In the midst of a pennant race, he posted a .374 average, six home runs, five steals, and a 1.060 OPS in August. To start September, he's already got eight hits with two home runs, two doubles, a steal, and eight RBI in just 13 at-bats. Pedroia has good enough numbers to go along with immense effort and hard-nosed determinism on the field to draw MVP voters' attention.

In 2007, Pedroia overcame a slow start to win the Rookie of the Year award. After another slow start, he went on an extended hot streak and made his first All-Star team in 2008. With a few weeks left in the regular season, it looks like he's not done yet. Dustin Pedroia is a real contender for the 2008 AL MVP award.

(1) "Did you hear the story about Pedroia?" Hacks with Haggs. hackswithhaggs.com

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