David Ortiz
David Américo Ortiz Arias, nicknamed "Big Papi", is a Dominican-American former professional baseball designated hitter who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1997 to 2016, primarily for the Boston Red Sox. After playing parts of six seasons with the Minnesota Twins, Ortiz moved to the Red Sox, where he played a leading role in ending the team's 86-year World Series championship drought in 2004, as well as winning championships in 2007 and 2013; he was named the World Series Most Valuable Player in 2013. In his first five seasons with the club, he averaged 41 home runs and 128 runs batted in, leading the American League twice in the latter category and setting the team's single-season record of 54 home runs in 2006; he finished in the top five of the AL's Most Valuable Player voting all five years.
Used almost exclusively as a DH during his 14 seasons with the Red Sox, he was a ten-time All-Star and a seven-time Silver Slugger winner, and became regarded as one of the greatest designated hitters of all time. He received the Edgar Martínez Award as the league's top DH eight times, and set major league records for career home runs, RBIs and hits as a DH. He posted ten seasons each with 30 home runs and 100 RBIs, and batted.300 or better seven times. After a drop in his offensive numbers from 2008 to 2012, he enjoyed a strong resurgence in his last four seasons, and had one of his best years in his final campaign, leading the AL in doubles, RBIs, and slugging percentage, once again leading the team to the postseason.
Upon his retirement, Ortiz ranked sixth in AL history with 541 home runs, fifth in doubles and ninth in RBIs. Regarded as one of the greatest clutch hitters of all time, he had 11 career walk-off home runs during the regular season and two during the 2004 postseason, the first of which clinched the AL Division Series. In 2022, Ortiz was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
Early life
David Américo Ortiz Arias was born on November 18, 1975, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, as the oldest of four children of Enrique Ortiz and Ángela Rosa Arias. As a boy, he followed the careers of standout pitcher Ramón Martinez and his younger brother Pedro, attending games whenever he could and building a friendship with Pedro that would only grow over the years. Ortiz graduated from Estudia Espaillat High School in the Dominican Republic, and was a standout baseball and basketball player there.Professional career
Minor leagues
On November 28, 1992, Ortiz was signed by the Seattle Mariners just 10 days after his 17th birthday, who listed him as "David Arias" due to not being familiar with Spanish naming customs. He made his professional debut in 1994 for the Mariners of the Arizona League, batting.246 with two home runs and 20 RBI. By 1995, he had improved those numbers to.332 with four home runs and 37 RBI. In 1996, he was promoted to the Single-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers of the Midwest League, a Mariners farm team. He established himself as one of the Mariners' best hitting prospects, batting.322 with 18 home runs and 93 RBI. Ortiz also impressed both fans and Mariners' players like Alex Rodriguez with a strong performance in an impromptu home run derby—the result of a failed Mariners' promotion in which the Timber Rattlers were supposed to play an exhibition game against the MLB club in front of their home fans in Wisconsin, but the game was rained out. Also in Wisconsin, Ortiz met his future wife Tiffany; she led him to become a fan of the nearby Green Bay Packers NFL team, a devotion that would become lifelong. Baseball America named Ortiz the most exciting player in the Midwest League, as well as its best defensive first baseman for 1996.Despite his strong year in the Mariners' system, on September 13, 1996, Ortiz was traded to the Minnesota Twins as the player to be named later to complete an earlier transaction for Dave Hollins. When he arrived in Minnesota, he informed the team that he preferred to be listed as "David Ortiz"—using his paternal family name rather than "Arias" which was his maternal family name. Referring to the switch, sportswriter Jay Jaffe called Arias/Ortiz "literally the player to be named later."
Ortiz rose quickly through the Twins system in 1997. Though he started with the High-A Fort Myers Miracle, he quickly progressed through Double-A, to the Triple-A Salt Lake Buzz. At the three levels, Ortiz combined to hit.317 with 31 home runs and 124 RBI, earning a September call-up to the Twins' MLB club.
Minnesota Twins (1997–2002)
1997
Ortiz made his MLB debut for the Twins on September 2, 1997. He played in 15 games in September, batting.327 in 49 at bats. He recorded his first major league hit in his second game, on September 3, with an eighth-inning pinch-hit double against the Chicago Cubs. He hit his first major league home run on September 14 against the Texas Rangers, off pitcher Julio Santana, going 3-for-4 with two walks in the game overall. Ortiz hit one home run and had 6 RBI in his first season.1998
In 1998, Ortiz entered the season with his sights set on playing as the regular first baseman for the Twins. However, Ortiz's playing style was somewhat different from the approach favored by manager Tom Kelly, which placed a premium on avoiding strikeouts, and great defense. While Kelly worked with Ortiz on his defense, he hit well, batting.306 through May 9 before fracturing his wrist and going on the disabled list. He returned to the Twins in July following a rehab assignment to Triple-A and finished the season with the team. He ended his rookie year strong, batting.360 in September. All told, he hit.277 with nine home runs and 46 RBI in 86 games.1999
In 1999, Ortiz figured to be a fixture in the lineup, but after a tough spring training which saw him bat only.137, he was sent down to the Triple-A Salt Lake Buzz as the sure-handed rookie Doug Mientkiewicz earned the first base job. It was becoming apparent that manager Tom Kelly preferred veteran players or those who fit into his small-ball and good defense philosophy, something Ortiz would later be vocal about after his days with the Twins. While Ortiz tore through minor league pitching to the tune of a.315 average with 30 home runs and 110 RBI, Twins first basemen would go on to hit just.245 with 11 homers and 69 RBI all season. Twins designated hitters did not fare much better, batting a combined.259 with 14 home runs and 82 RBI. Ortiz's strong season in Triple-A was too much for Kelly to ignore, and Ortiz again earned a September call-up in 1999. It did not go well for Ortiz, as he struck out 12 times in 20 at-bats, and did not register a hit.2000
By 2000, with the Twins coming off three consecutive seasons of over 90 losses, Ortiz's bat could not be buried in the minor leagues much longer. After playing only sparingly during the season's first two months, by June 2000 he finally established himself as an MLB regular. However, Ortiz played primarily at designated hitter as manager Kelly stuck with the veteran Ron Coomer at first base. When Ortiz homered on June 9 against the Milwaukee Brewers, it was his first MLB home run in more than a year. On September 7, he hit his first major league grand slam at Fenway Park against Boston Red Sox pitcher Ramón Martínez, one of his childhood heroes from the Dominican Republic. As his playing time increased, his stats improved. Despite his slow start, he finished at.282 with 10 home runs and 63 RBI. His 36 doubles were second on the team to Matt Lawton's 44, despite Ortiz having almost 200 fewer plate appearances. Ortiz's.364 on-base percentage was fourth on the team among players with more than 100 plate appearances.2001
Ortiz began the 2001 season as the regular DH and started the year strong, batting.311 with six home runs and 18 RBI through May 4. For the first time in years, the Twins were a contender thanks to a hot start helped by Ortiz's hitting. However, another wrist fracture landed Ortiz back on the disabled list, and he did not return until July. It was apparent the injury affected his production, as he batted just.202 upon his return. He finished the year with a disappointing.234 average, however, the 11 home runs he hit over the season's final two months offered a glimmer of hope for the future. Despite their hot start, the Twins ultimately did not qualify for the postseason but did win a very respectable 85 games. It was the franchise's first winning season since 1992. At the end of the season, longtime Twins manager Tom Kelly retired, and Ron Gardenhire took over the reins.2002
The offseason proved very difficult for Ortiz, as on New Year's Day 2002, his mother died following a car accident. Gardenhire reached out and helped Ortiz deal with the death, and Ortiz prepared hard for the coming baseball season, both saddened his mother never saw him play at his best and determined to reach new heights. When the season began, Ortiz battled knee injuries. It was a tale of two seasons for Ortiz, as his.240 average with five homers and 33 RBI before the All-Star break was disappointing. But after the All-Star break, Ortiz quietly turned in one of the better second halves in baseball, batting.297 with 15 home runs and 42 RBI. On August 16, he hit a memorable home run off his friend Pedro Martínez at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, hitting an inside cut fastball into the upper deck. On September 25, he hit the first walk-off home run of his career, against the Cleveland Indians. He finished the 2002 season batting.272 with 20 home runs and 75 RBI. At this point in his career, the home run and RBI totals were both career bests. However, as he batted only.203 against left-handed pitching, Ortiz still was not always guaranteed to start if a tough lefty would be on the mound. His career year coincided with the Twins qualifying for the postseason, as the team won 94 games and upset the Oakland Athletics in the Division Series before falling in the 2002 American League Championship Series to the eventual World Series winning Anaheim Angels. Ortiz batted.276 in his first postseason, with 4 RBI. His 9th inning double in the decisive Game 5 of the Division Series put the Twins ahead 5–1 in a game they would hold on to win 5–4. The series-winning RBI was the first of what would be many clutch postseason hits in Ortiz's career.After the season, the small market Twins faced a decision on Ortiz, who had made $950,000 and would likely have been granted around $2 million for 2003 by an arbitrator. Rather than negotiate a contract, or go to arbitration, the Twins instead decided to release Ortiz as a cost-cutting move on December 16, after being unable to swing a trade for him. In parts of six seasons totaling 455 games with the Twins, Ortiz hit 58 home runs and had 238 RBI. The player who replaced Ortiz on the Twins' roster, Jose Morban, would never play in a game for the team.