Yardbarker: David Ortiz

Everything you always wanted to know about: OPS+

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:24:12 -0500

The world of advanced baseball statistics can be an intimidating place for those of us who slept our way through advanced algebra or haven't been a follower of the Bill James revolution from the beginning. Still, that doesn't mean that we should feel left out when it comes to another way of understanding and appreciating the game we all love. With that in mind, BLS stat doctor Alex Remington will explore a new advanced statistic each week during the offseason, providing a simple prim...

Once Again, David Ortiz Wants Another Power Bat

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:44:02 -0500

More photos » by Elise Amendola - AP 3 months ago: Boston Red Sox' David Ortiz stretches on the field prior to a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics at Fenway Park in Boston Thursday, July 30, 2009. Ortiz and Manny Ramirez were among the more than 100 Major League Baseball players who tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in 2003, according to a report in The New York Times. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) ...

David Ortiz Celebrity Golf Classic Online Auction Features a Host of Once-in-a-Lifetime Experiences

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:34:11 -0500

Auction Will Benefit the David Ortiz Children’s Fund BOSTON, MA November 16, 2009 - Can’t make it to Cap Cana in the Dominican Republic for the 2nd Annual David Ortiz Celebrity Golf Classic this year? You can still help David Ortiz raise funds for children in need by participating in the David Ortiz Celebrity Golf Classic [...]

Big Papi on Red Sox: 'I want to finish my career here'

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:40:53 -0500

Sporting News staff reports About to enter the final year of his contract (the team has a $12.5 million option for 2011), Red Sox DH David Ortiz told the Boston Herald that he knows he needs to step up in 2010. Ortiz says he plans to do just that and hopes to remain in Boston beyond next season. "I want to finish my career here," Ortiz told The Boston Globe. "I think I still have another three or four good years in me." Despite a slow start this season (one homer...

Big Papi Wants to Keep Playing Past 2010. I Hope He's Willing to Move

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:53:15 -0500

Big Papi told the Herald that he has 3-4 good years left but 2010 will be David Ortiz's last year in a Red Sox uniform. If Ortiz rebounds nicely next season there is still no way that Theo is going to pick up his $12.5 million option for 2011. The Red Sox have a track record of not committing to players past their prime or once that limit their options (Mike Lowell aside) and Ortiz will be one of those guys. He cannot play in the field and with Victor Martinez, Lars Anderson, and possi...

Big Papi Wants to Keep Playing Past 2010. I Hope He’s Willing to Move

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:53:15 -0500

Sox Ortiz Renames Sauce 'En frío'

Sun, 11 Oct 2009 08:22:00 -0500

David Ortiz has a new hot sauce, Big Papi En Fuego. No word on whether Ortiz puts any of the sauce on what Red Sox manager Terry Francona said is his pre-game ritual - "Have 12 pieces of bacon, a Red... Full story: http://www.bobsblitz.com Best Amazon prices for Blitz Subscribers: http://got.to/BlitzBestDeals

Can David Ortiz make it to 30 home runs and 2010?

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 12:05:32 -0500

Back when David Ortiz was mired in his homerless streak, not bopping his first home run until May 20 and his second until June 6, I made a bet with a friend that Ortiz would end up with 30 home runs. Ortiz had a torrid June and kept consistently banging out the home runs, so it was looking more and more like I would win the bet. However, Big Papi has followed up a .222/.330/.495 August with a clunker in September: .160/.250/.280 through September 9. As a result, Big Papi is only project...

Video: David Ortiz Walk-Off Home Run 8.26.2009

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 22:23:40 -0500

Here is the video of David Ortiz hitting the walk-off home run to give the Boston Red Sox a 3-2 win over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night at Fenway Park. (Please open the article to see the flash file or player.) And here we have NESN reporter Heidi Watney asking tough stupid questions as usual. DayPortPlayer.newPlayer({articleID:"6778",fileTypeID:"7",thumbnailView:"false",rootCategory:"3",playerInstanceID:"FA4BADDF-1121-2521-A713-8B4A46F12...

Ortiz Doth Bestride the Narrow Earth Like a Colossus. And Hits Some Major F#$king Home Runs, Too.

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 21:41:00 -0500

Doesn't a walk-off home run from Big Papi just feel better? Don't get me wrong. I'll take a walk-off from any of our guys on a steamy August night at Fenway. But there's just something about seeing that stoic profile as it turns to chart the ball's trajectory. Those meat-eater arms rising up into the night sky. That oversized body thumping around the bases like the Hulk navigating a minefield. The fans in the seats going apeshit and the players crowding around the plate. S...

David Ortiz deserves the same treatment as all those before him

Sun, 09 Aug 2009 11:57:00 -0500

David Ortiz was thrown a gigantic lifeline yesterday by the MLB Players Association when they issued a statement prior to Big Papi's afternoon press conference in New York. The statement basically said that they can't confirm or deny anything and that the MLBPA could not reveal what each player tested positive for. That gave Ortiz a huge loophole to use. Now, he could say it could have been anything, something from GNC, just like Alex Rodriguez said when he was revealed to be on th...

Oh, David Ortiz also held some sort of press conference today

Sat, 08 Aug 2009 14:41:45 -0500

So David Ortiz finally held his long-awaited press conference on Saturday morning — you know, the one where he was finally going to get to the bottom of things — and decided to heap the blame on a bunch of unidentified vitamins and supplements he apparently used without much discrimination in the past. BUT, he said, "I never buy steroids." You can read a transcript of Ortiz's opening comments here. Honestly, I can't say that I expected much else from today's ...

David Ortiz Addresses Media, Red Sox Issues Statement in Support

Sat, 08 Aug 2009 13:34:04 -0500

David Ortiz addressed the media today at Yankee Stadium before Game 3 of the current series between the Red Sox and Yankees took place. Ortiz and the MLB Players Association called the press conference to address a report in The New York Times in which Ortiz was named as being part of a list of 104 players that tested positive for PEDs as part of a 2003 Survey Test between MLB and the players to determine if mandatory drug testing would be implemented in 2004. Before the press conference, both the MLBPA and MLB released statements regarding the 2003 drug tests. In both statements, the sides cautioned that the leaked names may not be accurate. “Major League Baseball does not possess the list of names and is unable to assess the accuracy of leaks relating to individual names. The continued leaks related to the 2003 survey test results are in direct violation of court orders." Michael Weiner, the incoming executive director of the MLBPA said, “First, the number of players on the so-called "government list" meaningfully exceeds the number of players agreed by the bargaining parties to have tested positive in 2003. Accordingly, the presence of a player's name on any such list does not necessarily mean that the player used a prohibited substance or that the player tested positive under our collectively bargained program." The MLBPA then continued, "[I]n 2003, legally available nutritional supplements could trigger an initial "positive" test under our program. To account for this, each "test" conducted in 2003 actually consisted of a pair of collections: the first was unannounced and random, the second was approximately 7 days later, with the player advised to cease taking supplements during the interim. Under the 2003 program, a test could be initially reported as "positive", but not treated as such by the bargaining parties on account of the second test. “ Ortiz said at the press conference that he used legal nutritional supplements that, at the time, could have led to the positive test. An on-going issue in baseball today involves players from the Dominican Republic using supplements that, while legal in that country, are on MLB's banned list of substances. David Ortiz is from the Dominican Republic. The Red Sox issued the following statement regarding the testing program in 2003: The Players Association made clear in its public statement today that there are substantial uncertainties and ambiguity surrounding the list of 104 names from the 2003 survey test. Indeed, there is even uncertainty about the number of players on this 2003 government list, whether it is 104, 96, 83, or less. Many of those uncertainties apparently relate to the use of then-legal nutritional supplements that were not banned by Baseball. David vigorously denied ever buying or using steroids. As important, Major League Baseball has informed us that David has been tested every year since the implementation of the MLB/MLBPA program in 2004 and, under the program, he has been tested 15 or more different times. We have been informed that, during this entire 6-year period (2004-2009), David has never tested positive for a steroid. Also during this period, David voluntarily submitted himself to the Olympic standard of drug tests administered in connection with the World Baseball Classics in 2006 and in 2009. We are informed he did not test positive for steroids under those tests either, and he participated actively in both international tournaments. Last week, David said he would keep people informed after he personally looked into reports of his inclusion on the 2003 survey test. He has done so. David Ortiz is a team leader, and his contributions on the field and in the community have earned him respect and a special place in the hearts of Red Sox Nation. We appreciate the attention given to this specific matter by the Players Association and the Office of the Commissioner. The Boston Red Sox continue to support all efforts to rid the game of steroids. We again salute Commissioner Selig for his staunch and continuing leadership in eradicating the use of steroids in Major League Baseball. Below are excerpts of the Ortiz press conference: MORE ON THE 2003 MLB "SURVEY TEST" MLB Releases Statement Regarding 2003 Drug Test Prior to Ortiz Press Conference, MLBPA Releases Statement Regarding 2003 Drug Test MLBPA Releases Statement Explaining Why "Survey Test" Results Were Not Destroyed Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided). Don't forget to register and log in on The Biz of Baseball site to get updates via your in-box, and see information only logged in members can see. Follow Maury Brown on Twitter Follow The Biz of Baseball on Twitter

Incoming MLBPA head issues statement on Ortiz

Sat, 08 Aug 2009 09:50:51 -0500

Michael Weiner, the incoming head of the Players Association, and David Ortiz will speak to the media at 12:30 pm today. Here is an advance statement released by Weiner. Two money quotes:The number of players on the so-called "government list" meaningfully exceeds the number of players agreed by the bargaining parties to have tested positive in 2003. Accordingly, the presence of a player's name on any such list does not necessarily mean that the player used a prohibited substanc...

Prior to Ortiz Press Conference, MLBPA Releases Statement Regarding 2003 Drug Test

Sat, 08 Aug 2009 08:50:14 -0500

Prior to the 12:30pm ET press conference with David Ortiz, in which he will address his name being part a list of 104 players that tested positive for PEDs in 2003, Major League Baseball Players Association General Counsel, Michael Weiner, today issued the following statement: “The New York Times recently reported that David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez "are among the roughly 100 Major League Baseball players to test positive for performance-enhancing drugs in 2003." The reported sources for this statement were "lawyers with knowledge of the [test] results" who "spoke anonymously because the testing information is under seal by a court order." The Association has previously offered its views regarding this patent violation of court orders by attorneys, and The New York Times' active pursuit and publication of what it openly acknowledges to be information that may not be legally disclosed. “In light of the Times' report, and all the other newspaper reports it has spurred, the Association feels compelled to offer the following additional comments: “The sealing orders, which were appropriately issued by the various courts to maintain the collectively-bargained confidentiality of the testing, prevent the Association from supplying a player with specifics regarding his 2003 test results, or from discussing those specifics publicly. The practical effect of the sealing orders, if that confidentiality is to be maintained, is to further preclude the Players Association from confirming or denying whether a player's name appears on any list which purportedly discloses the 2003 test results. The result is that any union member alleged to have tested positive in 2003 because his name supposedly appears on some list -- most recently David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez – finds himself in an extremely unfair position; his reputation has been threatened by a violation of the court's orders, but respect for those orders now leaves him without access to the information that might permit him to restore his good name. “Unlike those anonymous lawyers who have violated the court orders -- and The New York Times, which has authorized an active and willful pursuit of those violations -- the Association will respect the courts' rulings. But we can legally say the following, each of which we suggest must be considered in assessing any and all newspaper reports stating a player has "tested positive for steroids in 2003.” “First, the number of players on the so-called "government list" meaningfully exceeds the number of players agreed by the bargaining parties to have tested positive in 2003. Accordingly, the presence of a player's name on any such list does not necessarily mean that the player used a prohibited substance or that the player tested positive under our collectively bargained program. “Second, substantial scientific questions exist as to the interpretation of some of the 2003 test results. The more definitive methods that are utilized by the lab that administers the current Drug Agreement were not utilized by the lab responsible for the anonymous testing program in 2003. The collective bargaining parties did not pursue definitive answers regarding these inconclusive results, since those answers were unnecessary to the administration of the 2003 program. “Third, in 2003, legally available nutritional supplements could trigger an initial "positive" test under our program. To account for this, each "test" conducted in 2003 actually consisted of a pair of collections: the first was unannounced and random, the second was approximately 7 days later, with the player advised to cease taking supplements during the interim. Under the 2003 program, a test could be initially reported as "positive", but not treated as such by the bargaining parties on account of the second test. “ Source: Major League Baseball Players Association Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus, and is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided). Don't forget to register and log in on The Biz of Baseball site to get updates via your in-box, and see information only logged in members can see. Follow Maury Brown on Twitter Follow The Biz of Baseball on Twitter