Red Sox 2B Dustin Pedroia to have thumb surgery next week

Boston Red Sox All-Star second baseman Dustin Pedroia is a career .302 hitter. (Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images) Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia

Boston Red Sox All-Star second baseman Dustin Pedroia is a career .302 hitter. (Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)

Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia will have surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb on Nov. 12, reports Jackie MacMullan of ESPN.com.

Pedroia said he played with the injury all season long after being hurt in the first game.

He ended up playing 160 games in the regular season and 16 postseason games, helping the team win their third World Series championship in the past 10 years.

Pedroia hit .301 with nine home runs, drove in 84 runs and led the American League with 724 plate appearances last season.

"I guess because I played with [the injury] the whole year, it's made it a little tougher," Pedroia said. "If they do the normal surgery, there has to be some good endings [of the ligament] to re-attach it. If there's not, we have to do it a different way."

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Pedroia is expected to be back in time for spring training.

"Either way, he would be expected back in time for spring trianing. "Everyone pitches me away, which I absolutely hate," added Pedroia. "But when I hurt my thumb, I couldn't hit the ball in. So, they were actually doing me a favor pitching me away so I could slap at some balls."