Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia and knuckleballer Steven Wright are both on the disabled list with knee inflammation. Both underwent cartilage restoration to try to repair damage to the articular cartilage, which acts as a cushion between joints and allows for smooth, pain-free movement.
Cartilage damage can be caused by wear and tear or by a traumatic injury.
“[Lesions] do not always produce symptoms at first because there are no nerves in the cartilage,’’ according to Dr. Riley Williams III of the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, who performed the procedures on both Pedroia and Wright.