The Boston Red Sox are giving Big Papi a much needed break. The team has benched the one-time slugger for tonight's game against the Seattle Mariners. J.D. Drew moved up to the No. 3 spot in the order and Rocco Baldelli took the designated hitter assignment.

David Ortiz is having a horrendous season. It is mid-May and Big Papi is still looking for his first home run of the season. He is batting a paltry .208 with a .318 OPS.

Yesterday against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in Orange County and California, Ortiz went 0-for-7 and left an astouding 12 runners on base (that was more than any team left on base on Thursday). He hasn't hit a home run since last September 22nd -- 144 at-bats ago.

This is a good move for the Red Sox and Ortiz. People around the team say that Ortiz is pressing. He's been getting a lot of heat, locally, as well as questions coming from the national media. There also has been some bubbling that the crackdown of steroids and PEDs may have caused this slump (I don't believe that).

Ortiz needs to get away for a game or two, and doing so way out in Seattle is the best time to do so. It won't get as much notice as it would at home or, really, against any team on the east coast. I hope Papi can get his stuff together and turn around this ugly slump.