All four Red Sox starters put up strong performances in Tuesday night’s All-Star Game as the American League secured home-field advantage for the World Series with a 4-2 win over the National League.
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The popular Big Papi was embraced by almost every member of the American League roster Tuesday night when he was replaced by a pinch runner and strolled back to the dugout. “Miguel Cabrera. Those are the guys you look over on the other side and you’re really in awe of what they’re able to do”. As the Boston slugger made his way through the scrum of players, he wrapped his Red Sox teammate Jackie Bradley Jr.in a bear hug and lifted him off the ground.
“My boy told me that he was going to throw me nothing but fastballs”, Ortiz said with a laugh, “and the first pitch was a changeup”.
“You see (David) Price is pitching better and (Rick) Porcello, the job he’s doing”.
Catcher Buster Posey of the Giants clapped his bare hand against his mitt as Ortiz left the field. The active leader in All-Star Games is Miguel Cabrera with 11, followed by Ortiz and Ichiro Suzuki (10 each).
“I think the coolest one that I saw was Game 2 of the ALCS against the Tigers”, Lester said.
Ortiz, as usual, was in the spotlight Tuesday in San Diego, getting a standing ovation after exiting Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game for the final time.
The answer is surprising, given that Ortiz has 525 home runs (19th on the all-time list) and 1,713 RBIs (23rd) to go along with his career.286 batting average and 618 doubles. And what he wants is for the Boston Red Sox to be good, both this season and beyond.
“He has incredible stuff”, Ortiz said to reporters after the All-Star Game of Fernandez. Those were the days when Barry Bonds could playfully lift Torii Hunter off the ground for stealing a home run from him, or Randy Johnson had the freedom to throw a ball to the screen and almost send John Kruk into cardiac arrest, or Larry Walker could turn his helmet around and bat from the right side against the Big Unit for laughs.
“Let me tell you what he asked me”. I want him in my starting rotation. He called it.’ Then it’s 3-2 and he throws me a slider.
Fernandez called it “an unbelievable experience. After that, I tried to make good pitches and tried to get him out”.
“It’s sad to see him go – it’s sad to see a great career coming to an end – but he’s one of our idols, over in the Dominican, so it’s sad to see him go but at the same time it’s great that he’s retiring with some great numbers and with his head held high.”
“It was just special”. If Ortiz hadn’t reached, Yost planned to send him up for a third at-bat, wait for him to be announced and then send up a pinch-hitter. I mean, you never know. “So that was a cool moment, I thought”.
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Big Papi addressed his teammates earlier in the day. “I’m guessing the Reds don’t hate that I’ve played well, because it helps them now and if it does come down to a trade, having more value has never hurt an organization”. You will hate the broadcast and the broadcasters and the game, for several years, has inexplicably had postseason impact forced upon it even though the involved players treat it like the glorified exhibition that it is. “I fully expect the Reds to fully vet every option they can and we’ll see what happens”.
