Boston Red Sox DH David Ortiz pretty much summed up his afternoon by saying “Papi stinks” after he left 12 men on base as he went 0-for-7 in the 5-4 extra innings loss to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
Everybody out there knows Big Papi hasn’t hit a home run this season and he’s struggled mightily at the plate. There seemed like a few times where he was close to getting out of black hole he’s in but he’s never been able to sustain it.
There doesn’t appear to be anything physically wrong with him so it has to be a mental thing. As much as baseball is a physical game, it’s more of a mental game. You have to think of the pitch that’s coming, decide to swing, etc. But when you’re in a rut like Ortiz is, those decisions may not come as quick as he liked. He’s been swinging at some bad pitches but that’s not to see he’s been getting some good pitches.
Yesterday he had a few fastballs thrown right by him. A “normal” Ortiz rarely ever missed those. Now it seems commonplace.
Their are a few logical situations to help him out. For one, Terry Francona could move him down in the lineup so there isn’t as much pressure on him. Francona could also give Ortiz a few mental health days. Since it’s quite possible they could face a few lefties this weekend, the timing couldn’t be any better. There’s also the phantom DL although they may have a harder time sliding that one by.
One thing’s for certain, the Red Sox need him on top of his game. If he doesn’t recover, it’s quite possible we could be seeing a new DH-type player come the trade deadline.
The 12th of never [Boston Globe]
Red Sox leave 17 on as Halos win [Boston Herald]
Clutch hits are hard to come by for Boston [Providence Journal]
Ortiz hits a new low by going 0 for 7 in defeat [Boston Globe]
Julio Lugo slaps high 5 [Boston Herald]
Red Sox journal: Pedroia picks up where he left off [Providence Journal]
Expanded zone was striking [Boston Globe]
No waiting on Dustin Pedroia [Boston Herald]
Ortiz: “Papi stinks” [Projo Sox Blog]
Friday Nuggetpalooza! [Nuggetpalooza]
Francona tossed over cheeky talk to ump [Projo Sox Blog]
Five Things We Learned: Ortiz Might Have Hit Bottom [WEEI.com]
Out on the West Coast [Justin Masterson – CSN]
Time off could help Ortiz [Heidi Watney – NESN.com]
People Like Him, But That’s About It [Boston Dirt Dogs]
Beware the Angel Stadium Chicken, Red Sox fans [Red Sox Monster]
Take Ortiz out of the 3rd slot!! [Batter-up with Bruno]
For more slices of Boston Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, and Providence Journal websites.
And if you must see what the enemy papers are saying you can check out the LA Times, Orange County Register and LA Daily News websites.
