Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said Dustin Pedroia will not need more surgery and he expects the veteran second baseman to be ready to go by the time the 2019 season rolls around.
“He is not going to have surgery,” Dombrowski said Monday. “He’s continued to rehab with therapy. He’ll continue that until the middle of December and then start some additional exercises and more physical activities other than the therapy.
“At that point, sometime in January, he’ll start running, so then we expect him to get himself ready. So really, with that prognosis, we’re pretty well set with our positional players.
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“You always have to be open-minded for certain things happening. We’re hoping Dustin will be fine.”
Pedroia, 35, played in only three games last season.
He had knee surgery in October 2017 and then another surgical procedure this past July to remove scar tissue.
Dombrowski also said he has had conversations with free agents Nathan Eovaldi, Craig Kimbrel, and Joe Kelly and has talked to agents and teams about possible needs that may arise.
He also said he doesn’t necessarily have to add another starting pitcher with Steven Wright returning.
NICK CAFARDO
Nick Cafardo can be reached at cafardo@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @nickcafardo.