David Ortiz
From BR Bullpen
David Americo Ortiz Arias (Big Papi, Senor Octubre)
- Bats Left, Throws Left
- Height 6' 4", Weight 230 lb.
- Debut September 2, 1997
- Born November 18, 1975 in Santo Domingo, D.R.
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[edit] Biographical Information
David Ortiz was originally signed by the Seattle Mariners as an undrafted free agent in 1992. On August 29, 1996, the M's sent a player to be named later to the Minnesota Twins for Dave Hollins. The player to be named turned out to be David Ortiz, who broke in to the big leagues with the Twins the following year and spent six seasons in Minnesota.
Since joining the Boston Red Sox in 2003, David Ortiz has earned increasing acclaim for his clutch hitting. As a Red Sox he has hit nine walk-off home runs.
Despite being one of baseball's most feared hitters during the 2000's, David Ortiz's 1999 season in which he went 0 for 20 with 12 strikeouts makes it all the more amazing that he ever was given a second shot at the big leagues.
In August 2006, Ortiz checked into the hospital two separate times as a result of heart palpitations. Since he has presumably passed Red Sox physicals to determine the status of his general health, one can only wonder what this is about. At the time, he was leading the league home runs by a fairly large margin and won his first home run title with 54 while playing in 151 of the team's 162 games.
Although Ortiz led the American League in homers in 2006 by a large margin, he did not have the highest slugging percentage in the league, an honor that went to Travis Hafner. Ortiz was also second in the league in slugging in 2004, behind Manny Ramirez, and in 2005, behind Alex Rodriguez. He was 3rd in 2003.
Ortiz reached base in 16 of his first 18 plate appearances in the 2007 postseason.
Ortiz went 2 for 8 with 3 walks and a double as the Dominican 1B in the 2009 World Baseball Classic in which the Dominican Republic was surprisingly eliminated in 3 games (2 losses to the Netherlands).
On July 30th, 2009, Ortiz was outed as one of the 104 players, along with Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez and Sammy Sosa, listed as having tested positive in "anonymous" testing for performance-enhancing drugs in 2003. Ortiz expressed surprise, saying he had never taken anything suspicious.
Because of his power, lack of speed, and tendency to pull the ball, most opposing teams play a defensive shift when Ortiz comes to the plate: three infielders will usually position themselves between first and second base, with the second baseman in short right field, and the third baseman will play in the normal shortstop position.
Below is a list of his walk-off home runs:
| Date | Opponent | Opposing Pitcher | Inning | Runs | Final Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 23, 2003 | Baltimore Orioles | Kurt Ainsworth | 10 | 1 | 6 - 5 |
| April 11, 2004 | Toronto Blue Jays | Aquilino Lopez | 12 | 2 | 6 - 4 |
| October 8, 2004 | Anaheim Angels | Jarrod Washburn | 10 | 2 | 8 - 6 |
| October 17, 2004 | New York Yankees | Paul Quantrill | 12 | 2 | 6 - 4 |
| June 2, 2005 | Baltimore Orioles | B.J. Ryan | 9 | 3 | 6 - 4 |
| September 6, 2005 | Anaheim Angels | Scot Shields | 9 | 1 | 3 - 2 |
| June 11, 2006 | Texas Rangers | Akinori Otsuka | 9 | 3 | 5 - 4 |
| June 24, 2006 | Philadelphia Phillies | Tom Gordon | 10 | 2 | 5 - 3 |
| July 31, 2006 | Cleveland Indians | Fausto Carmona | 9 | 3 | 9 - 8 |
- First player ever to hit two walk-off home runs in the same postseason (series winner vs. Angels in ALDS and ALCS Game 4 vs. Yankees).
- Has developed a Reggie Jackson-like reputation for clutch hitting.
- Finished 2nd in 2005 AL MVP voting to Alex Rodriguez.
- Named "The Greatest Clutch Hitter in the History of the Boston Red Sox" by Red Sox principal owner John W. Henry on September 6, 2005.
- First Red Sox player in history to hit 40 or more home runs in three consecutive seasons (2004-2006).
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 7-time AL All-Star (2004-2008, 2010 & 2011)
- 2004 ALCS MVP
- 5-time AL Silver Slugger Award Winner (2004-2007 & 2011/DH)
- AL On-Base Percentage Leader (2007)
- AL Total Bases Leader (2006)
- AL Home Runs Leader (2006)
- 2-time AL RBI Leader (2005 & 2006)
- 2-time AL Bases on Balls Leader (2006 & 2007)
- 20-Home Run Seasons: 11 (2002-2011)
- 30-Home Run Seasons: 6 (2003-2007 & 2010)
- 40-Home Run Seasons: 3 (2004-2006)
- 50-Home Run Seasons: 1 (2006)
- 100 RBI Seasons: 6 (2003-2007 & 2010)
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 3 (2005-2007)
- Won two World Series with the Boston Red Sox (2004 & 2007)
[edit] Records Held
- Home runs, designated hitter, season, 47, 2006
- Home runs, designated hitter, career, 333
- Runs batted in, designated hitter, career, 1097
