It could have sent Dustin Pedroia down an unfamiliar path -- one that made the Red Sox second baseman start thinking about self-preservation.

Could have, but, according to Pedroia, won't.

The dive in Oakland had put a cast on his right hand, protecting the thumb which was strained enough to land Pedroia on the 15-day disabled list for the second time in his career. It is a challenge that is nothing new to the infielder, who has battled through various physical setbacks his young career. Some resulting in missed games (thumb, broken foot), others just testing the 27-year-old's pain tolerance (hamate bone, knee).

Sometimes there is a price to pay for religiously playing hard. It was the kind of reality that led to whispers as Kevin Youkilis' career unfolded. Pedroia doesn't want to hear it. There hasn't been an injury which has altered his approach, with this one being no exception.

"I play hard, that's my job," Pedroia said. "It's something I'll do for the next 10 years. It's unfortunate that it's kind of a freak deal, but I take care of my body and, knock on wood, never pulled a muscle, never pulled a hamstring or a quad or anything like that. Freak injuries are part of the game. It's going to happen. It's part of the game. Just try and heal up and get back out there."

Nobody is going to try and change Pedroia's mind. The baseball world yearns for the here and the now of playing hard, not contract-induced cautiousness. 

"He's one of my favorites," said Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter. "I like watching him play."

But should this latest ailment lead to the unthinkable: an altered approach?

Pedroia is smack dab in the middle of a whole new class of second basemen, a group that is leap-frogging their counterparts at shortstop when it comes to financial windfalls. There are now more second basemen carrying contracts worth at least $10 million a year than shortstops.

Even with his injury-aided downturn this season, Pedroia's numbers can be lumped in with the position's best of the best. Since 2007, the Sox No. 2 hitter has the third-best OPS (.833) of any second baseman, trailing Chase Utley and Robinson Cano. 

He is coming off an '11 season in which he trailed only Cano in OPS for second basemen, leading all players at the position in plate appearances (730).

Pedroia has afforded himself the luxury of not getting to the point where an injury such as his current issue affects future financials, sitting in the midst of a six-year, $40.5 million deal with an $11 million club option for '15. But with Cano's future contract figuring to easily exceed over $20 million a year, and Kinsler -- whom Pedroia's numbers have eclipsed when both in their respective lineups -- having signed his five-year, $75 million deal, comparisons are going to continue.

"I think that was definitely one of the goals in the negotiations from my side," Kinsler said when asked about how he prioritized keeping the second baseman market trending in the right direction.

"Through the process there was always that, 'Well, you do play second base. Second basemen aren't paid as much as other players at other positions in the game.' They're not the same as they used to be. I definitely took that into consideration. I definitely thought about the players who have deals coming who are playing second baseman that are just like that. It worked out the right way."

All things to think about … unless you're Pedroia.

"You build up as much as you can in the offseason and prepare the best you can to prevent injury. That's the biggest thing. I plan on going out there and playing 160 games a year and be out there, because I'm out there I know I'm going to help our team win," he said. "That's the goal. I just go out there and play. If I don't break a bone or I'm not really hurt, I can go out there and play.

"You try and block it out. I knew it was going to be difficult [after tearing a muscle in his adductor muscle in early May], but I'm not just an offensive player. I've won a couple of Gold Gloves playing defense, I'm a good baserunner, so there are other ways I can impact a game, not just offensively so that's why I wanted to be out there. Numbers don't define you as a player. I figured I would play and my thumb started feeling great, I would unleash the fury."

Pedroia's confidence in staying the course stems from his history of producing when not 100 percent (remember the World Series home run with a broken bone in his hand?) and the promise of finding health right around the corner.

"I'm a lizard. I heal while I play," he said. "I'm a freak healer. I heal great."

The uneasiness from the injuries will continue ("That's the part that's frustrating. I was about to get on a huge run the rest of the way like I always do. But there are still a lot of games left, I'll heal this up, get back out there and make a huge difference," he said), but that -- along with any sort of future financial windfall -- won't derail Pedroia's intentions.

"I'm not going to change a thing," he said.