"Everyone knows I would have been ready to go (in the second round of the playoffs) if we continued on with the season," Quentin said. "After we finished, I took two or three weeks off to make sure we had everything right with the wrist. There was no need to do anything else with it at that point, with a chance to re-injure it."

Quentin acknowledged what general manager Ken Williams stated at the GM meetings, insisting that the right-handed hitter would have been activated and in the starting lineup if the Sox would have been able to get past Tampa Bay in the AL Division Series and moved on to play Boston.

"I hit about a week ago, and it was a non-factor," Quentin said. "I have not felt it in my swing and doing the one-handed stuff. I like using that one-armed bat, taking everything out of the equation to make sure my wrist is fine. And it responded great."

As Williams tinkers with the lineup this winter, already trading Nick Swisher to the New York Yankees, Quentin's name can be penciled into the No. 3 spot of the batting order. Quentin hit .288 with 36 home runs, 100 RBIs and a .394 on-base percentage this year.

And while he'll have to wait for an MVP award, Quentin did grab some hardware this postseason, earning a Silver Slugger.

"When talking about guys around the game or who are involved in the game, when they can sit there and acknowledge you for having a good year and appreciate what you accomplished, I just can't thank them enough," Quentin said. "Since the start of last season, I've set small goals of really just getting on the field and then staying on the field, and this award was never in my mind. But it's special."