Is David Ortiz Being Selfish Or Smart?
BOSTON (CBS) -- On Wednesday night, David Ortiz played first base at Fenway Park for the second time in the span of four days. The Red Sox won both of those games, and Ortiz's ability to step in at first base -- which thereby allows Hanley Ramirez to DH and the Red Sox to field their very best lineup -- has been a major help for manager John Farrell.
But it won't be going forward.
Ortiz declared after the game that he does not plan on playing first base much at all going forward. He's worried about getting injured, mostly.
"Am I going to keep on playing first base? I don't know if that's gonna happen," Ortiz said.
When asked if he wants to play the position, Ortiz laughed and said, "Hell no. We'll see how that goes."
Rich Shertenlieb interpreted Ortiz's comments as the DH just being selfish.
"Does that sound like somebody who thinks winning is first, or someone who thinks stats are first?" Rich said. "That, to me, sounds selfish. ... Realistically, how many games for the rest of the season do you think he's going to be playing first base? Fifteen, 20, possibly. Tops, 20. Do you think that that's reason to bitch? That you might play 15, possibly 20 more games at first base?"
Dan Roche, filling in for Fred Toucher, didn't see Ortiz's comments as complaining, but rather a reasonable point from a 39-year-old DH.
"I think it's a legitimate conversation that will take place with Farrell as to whether or not David's capable of doing that," Roche said.
Jon Wallach stood on Roche's side: "If David Ortiz gets hurt and he is not able to play for this team down the stretch, if you are a Red Sox fan that believes they can contend (and I'm not convinced yet), and you have no David Ortiz in your lineup, can you win?"
Rich contended it's not about that. It's about a player not wanting to do what a manager assigns him to do.
"He's being asked by John Farrell, and he is saying, 'I don't want to play first base,'" Rich said. "'Hell no' were his words."
Rich said he understands that sometimes Ortiz needs a "me against the world" type of attitude in order to keep his competitive fire burning, but the comments nevertheless come across as selfish.
"We love it when they speak the truth, but I want the truth to be about wanting to put the team first," Rich said.
"But don't you think it's his way of saying it?" asked Roche. "When has David Ortiz ever said, 'I don't want to win'? When has he ever said that?"
"Well, it kind of sounds that way here," Rich said.
"No it doesn't," said Roche. "He just answered a question -- 'I just want to make sure that I'm out there, that I'm healthy.' He could even use the third person -- 'Whether Big Papi is out there or not makes a difference in this lineup.' And it does."
Rich did raise a fair point: "Is there a position in baseball that gets injured less than first base? Think of all the positions in baseball, that's gotta be the one you worry about the least, correct? ... "I still think he thinks about himself before the team."
"But he has to, Rich. That's his job," replied Roche. "He's a designated hitter. He does one thing. He's no different than a golfer. How does David Ortiz succeed? How does Tiger Woods succeed? By perfecting his swing and four times a night, it's his job to hit. That's his job."
Rich didn't like that analogy: "When you're a golfer, you're the only one that matters. When you are a player on a Major League Baseball team, you have to think of the big picture."
Listen to the full discussion below: