Boston Red Sox: David Ortiz’s Top 10 Career Moments
Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz is retiring, and MLB is losing one of the most prolific designated hitters in history. We will take a look back through his career and break down the top 10 David Ortiz moments.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that the most clutch hitter in Boston Red Sox history has decided to hang up the spikes after the 2016 season. David Ortiz is in the midst of one of the greatest last seasons to ever be played in MLB.
But that’s no real surprise at all. After all, Ortiz has loaded his career, especially in Boston, with dramatic flare and heroic moments. He’s provided numerous historical moments for not just the city of Boston and the Red Sox, but for the entire MLB. Ortiz has altered the course of playoff races, World Series titles, MLB records, Red Sox records and the attitude of an entire city.
When legendary players retire, their careers can usually be summed up in a couple of words. For Derek Jeter, it was Respect. He was one of the classiest players in the game and was respected tremendously. I think the word that comes to my mind when speaking about Ortiz is beloved.
Sure, Yankee fans might not be the first to invite him over for Thanksgiving dinner, but for the most part fans and players alike love Big Papi. He’s this huge figure who is always smiling, laughing, or telling a joke. He’s the first on the field to talk and hug opposing players, and he’s the one guy at Spring Training to bring kids on the field with him.
To put it simply, a Boston legend is retiring, and a baseball Icon is hanging up the spikes. When David Ortiz takes his final at-bat, whether it be at Fenway Park or some other stadium, I think we all know it will be special. If it’s up to him, we know it will be.
Ortiz’s legacy is hard to measure, and it’s going to be a sad day when he announces his official retirement in November. So although we might not be able to give him a gift like a Lego statue of himself, we can honor him by breaking down the top 10 moments in his career.
Next: A One-Man Show
#10 Takes Down the Astros in Extras
This might not be one of the legendary moments in David Ortiz’s career, but it’s certainly one of the better ones from his last season, which is why it lands on this list.
Ortiz has never hit a home run, triple, and double in the same game before, but that all changed on May 15th in a game against the Astros.
The Astros jumped out to a quick 5-2 lead after a home run and grand slam. This is where Ortiz really started to take over the game. In the third, Ortiz blasted a deep right field home run that moved him past Ernie Banks and Eddie Matthews for 22nd on the all-time home run list.
Let’s fast forward to the ninth. It was 5-4 and Ortiz was up to bat with two outs and a man on first. He drove a line drive to center that looked like an out originally, but took a weird spin and got past the diving Jake Marisnick to score Xander Bogaerts and tie the game.
Now in the 11th and in a tie game, of course it comes back to David Ortiz. With Bogaerts now on second, Big Papi absolutely launched a double to the deepest part of center field to drive in the winning run and end the game.
He was mobbed at second and was drenched with rosin and Gatorade. It seemed like a one-man show that day, and has been his best performance of his farewell season.
Next: Foreshadowing History
#9 First Red Sox Home Run
Remember learning about foreshadowing in elementary school and thinking, “That’s really freaking cool?” Well… at least I did, and I don’t know if there is any form of foreshadowing quite this great.
Let’s go all the way back to 2003 to a game where the Red Sox took on the Angels. The starting DH in that game for the Red Sox was a guy named Jeremy Giambi. Ring a bell? He’s the little brother of slugger Jason Giambi.
He was the regular DH in 2003 before Ortiz really stamped his name on the position. After going 0-for-4, Giambi was pulled from the game in favor of a pinch-hitter. The game was in the 14th inning and fans were ready to head home.
Grady Little pulled Ortiz off the bench to hit and what happened next was just perfect. Ortiz took a light swing off a low and outside pitch from Mickey Callaway and it landed just over the left field wall and into the bullpen. He trotted around the bases for his very FIRST time as a member of the Boston Red Sox.
Yes, his first home run as a Red Sox was a 14th inning game-winner. If that’s not cool foreshadowing, I’m not sure what is. He would soon after take over at DH full-time, and the legend of Big Papi would be born.
#8 Game-Tying Double in the 2003 ALDS
This was one of the first “clutch” moments that we would see in David Ortiz’s career, and we just didn’t know it yet. It’s also one of the cooler videos I have found for this article because Fenway Park absolutely bumps after this double.
To give some background here, the Red Sox trailed the Oakland Athletics two games to none in the 2003 ALDS. They came back to win Game 3 and went into Game 4 still on the brink of elimination.
We’ll fast forward to the bottom of the eighth inning in Game 4. Keith Foulke is on the mound for the A’s, how ironic. Oh and by the way, the bench coach for the A’s – Terry Francona – but this is unrelated.
Nomar Garciaparra doubled with one out, and Manny Ramirez would single with two outs to advance Nomar to third. That set up Big Papi’s first great playoff moment. With two outs and down a run, Ortiz cranked a ball to right field. Jermaine Dye played the ball well off the right field bullpen wall, but that Manny Ramirez lightning speed (joke) was just too much to handle.
The crowd absolutely lost their minds and the Red Sox would end up climbing back from a two-game deficit to win the series. Although they couldn’t put the Yankees away in the ALCS, maybe this was foreshadowing of how David Ortiz could help the Red Sox come back in a series.
#7 Charging Kevin Gregg
As a kid watching this go down, I was in disbelief. Thankfully, I was watching the game live when Ortiz decided to drop the gloves and head on out to the mound to meet Kevin Gregg.
I’m probably just biased, but I always really disliked Kevin Gregg. Maybe I thought he thought he was better than he was, he was a bit cocky, and my god… look at those ridiculous glasses/goggles he wears on the field.
The Red Sox put up eight runs in the first inning off of then Orioles starter Zach Britton. The Red Sox had a 10-3 lead in the bottom of the eighth and that’s when things got messy. Gregg was pitching to Ortiz with Josh Reddick on third base. He threw two pitches inside and Ortiz had to jump out of the way at one of them. The third pitch was inside, and Ortiz proceeded to walk towards the mound screaming at Gregg.
With a 3-0 count and both players heated, Ortiz lofted a shallow fly ball to center. He started to casually jog to first base, which upset Gregg and prompted him to yell at Ortiz. Of course, Ortiz ran out to the mound and dodged a punch before just missing a punch of his own.
Benches cleared and Ortiz had to be dragged away from the situation. It was one of those moments that just don’t happen often for a mostly level-headed Ortiz, so it came as a bit of a shock. In the end, it was an awesome Ortiz moment to throw a punch and it was his only big-league brawl.
#6 500th Home Run
David Ortiz has hit A LOT of home runs over the span of his career, and many of those have helped propel the Red Sox to history, but his 500th homerun was one that truly helped set him apart.
Ortiz is one of just 27 players in the history of Major League Baseball hit 500 home runs, which is extremely impressive. 17 of those 27 members are currently in the Hall of Fame, which certainly bodes well for Ortiz.
The home run in that moment wasn’t exactly a glorious one, thanks partly to the fact that it was hit in the dumpster of all MLB ballparks, Tropicana Field in Tampa. On top of that, the Red Sox were playing for a fourth-place spot in the AL East at the time he hit it.
Regardless of the Red Sox’s status at that time or the ballpark it was hit in, the home run was monumental for Ortiz’s career. To top it off, Don Orsillo had a brilliant call and made the moment just a bit more special as he was on his way out. It was also a nice sentiment by the Red Sox to wait for Ortiz outside of the dugout for Big Papi to make his rounds.
#5 2013 World Series
The 2013 World Series was obviously a great time in October for all Red Sox fans. The Red Sox won their eighth Commissioner’s Trophy and helped to heal the city of Boston. David Ortiz was responsible for so many of the good things in this series, and without him, the Red Sox would have had major issues just advancing.
By the end of the series, Ortiz was hitting .688 with two home runs and six RBI. In the clinching game Ortiz walked four times, three of those intentional. He got on base an incredible 19 times in 25 plate appearances! Both his on-base-percentage (.760) and batting average ranked second in World Series history.
One of Ortiz’s most memorable moments came in Game 4. The Red Sox were tied 1-1 when Ortiz gathered every single teammate and gave a pep talk. It’s not often you see every player in a dugout huddled around a player like he was a high school coach. He obviously sparked something as Jonny Gomes blasted a game-winning three-run home run to seal the deal.
It’s a moment like this that separates greatness from a great performance. In that moment, Ortiz showed that he was better than just a bat in the lineup or a home run hitter, he showed that he was the ultimate leader. It’s not hard to see why he was named the World Series MVP.
#4 Red Sox All-Time Single Season Home Run Record
This is a special home run for David Ortiz because it gave him something that only he has, a Red Sox record. This home run was number 51 for Ortiz who passed Jimmie Foxx. Foxx hit 50 home runs in 1938, which wasn’t even his career high in a season (he hit 58 with the Phillies).
For Ortiz to break a record that was tested for over 68 years is extremely impressive. The crazy thing is, and many of you probably won’t believe me when I tell you this, this is the only notable Red Sox record that Big Papi holds. He leads all Red Sox players in history in single-season home runs, and that is it.
It seems crazy, but it kind of makes sense. Ortiz is outdone by one player in almost every category. That guy, if you couldn’t guess, goes by the nickname of “the greatest hitter who ever lived.”
The home run was hit off of Johan Santana of the Twins, one of the most dominant pitchers at the time. It was his 44th of the season as a designated hitter, which broke his own previous record for home runs in a season for a designated hitter.
Don Orsillo once again hit a home run of his own with his call. The Red Sox would end up missing the playoffs that year, so his home run ended up providing Fenway Park with a much needed big moment.
#3 2013 ALCS Game 2
I like to call this one the grand slam heard around the world. This home run provided us with one of the great baseball pictures of the 21st century. It turned the momentum in a playoff series, and provided instant nostalgia for all Red Sox fans.
The Red Sox were no-hit into the ninth inning in Game 1 of the series against the Tigers in the 2013 American League Championship Series. Game 2 didn’t start much better. The Red Sox were trailing 5-1 headed into the bottom of the eighth, and they had managed just two hits off of Max Scherzer.
Finally, the Tigers bullpen gave Ortiz the chance the Red Sox needed. Will Middlebrooks doubled, followed up by a Jacoby Ellsbury walk and a Dustin Pedroia single. Joaquin Benoit was forced into the game with two outs to hopefully face just one hitter. Instead, it was just one pitch he would throw that would change the fate of the series.
Ortiz hit a first pitch fastball on a line toward the right field bullpen. Tori Hunter overran the ball and flipped over the bullpen wall as the ball sailed into history. The Red Sox bullpen cop infamously raised his arms in unison with Hunter’s legs and the game was tied. The picture can be seen here.
The Red Sox would go on to win the game in the bottom of the ninth and win the series in six games after Shane Victorino provided a late-inning grand slam of his own. In a season that meant so much to the city of Boston, David Ortiz picked the best time possible to come up to the bat and make history.
#2 2004 ALCS
I can’t begin to fathom how many articles exist on the internet with their main focus on this series. I don’t even want to look at how many articles exist where the main focus is one of David Ortiz’s at-bats in this series. The Red Sox literally made history in 2004 by becoming the first team to ever come from behind 3-0 in any major league playoff series and win.
If you don’t know how it happened, I don’t know why you’re even reading this article. If you don’t know how it happened, I strongly encourage you to watch “ESPN 30 for 30: Four Days in October”. There’s really no need for me to break down the exact at-bat and what happened, but I’ll just list it off.
Game 4 – The Yankees were supposed to clinch. They were supposed to depress the thousands of Red Sox fans in attendance at Fenway Park and continue the great “Curse of the Bambino” but they couldn’t. Instead, Dave Roberts famously stole second base and would go on to tie the game. Ortiz then came up in the bottom of the 14th with Manny Ramirez on first base and crushed a ball over the right field wall (he loves this spot). This was really the beginning of the end for the Yankees.
Game 5 – The Red Sox trailed the Yankees 4-2 in the bottom of the eighth before Ortiz hit a solo home run over the Green Monster to make it 4-3. The Red Sox would tie the game and set up Ortiz in the 14th with runners on first and second. He hit a little flair into center with two strikes and two outs to drive in Johnny Damon and end the game.
Game 7 – Ortiz would continue his tear with a solo home run at Yankee Stadium to make it a 2-0 game before the Red Sox absolutely tore it open and took the series. After the game, Ortiz was named the ALCS MVP and the “Big Papi” name meant more than just a lovable guy.
#1 Boston Bombings Pre-Game Speech
I debated over the number one moment of David Ortiz’s career a lot. On one hand, the 2004 ALCS is probably one of the most famous, if not the most famous, in MLB history. But the words that David Ortiz said before the game on April 20, 2013, are what David Ortiz should really be remembered by.
It was in this moment that David Ortiz was transcended from Boston baseball god to Boston hero, and the city loves their heroes more than their baseball gods. David Ortiz simply spoke to the city of Boston in the most authentic way possible. It was in that moment when we realized how much the city really meant to him.
Bostonians were in need of a shoulder to cry on, but more importantly a person to look up to. David Ortiz gave them that person. He didn’t know he was going to speak until just minutes before he went out there. It wasn’t a rehearsed speech and he didn’t debate whether or not he should say the F word… he just did it.
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I think it was at this time that all Red Sox players knew they were playing for something much bigger than themselves and the game of baseball. They were really playing for a city in need and the people who grieved, and David Ortiz sparked this. He said what everyone was thinking, and did it on the perfect platform.
The words he said were so inspiring and appropriate that the FCC decided not to fine NESN (New England Sports Network) for airing the speech live and not trying to bleep out the word. In fact, the chariman of the FCC actually tweeted out support for his words.
Next: When Will the DH Era End?
David Ortiz made the city of Boston know that they weren’t just champions, but they were strong. And this is why this moment is number one on this list. It may have nothing to do with an on-the-field action, but it has everything to do with who Big Papi is.
Thank you, David Ortiz.