David Ortiz responds to Bobby Valentine’s comments – MLB Update
Boston Red Sox’s designated hitter David Ortiz was very subtle when he was asked about former Manager Bobby Valentine’s comments about him a week ago.
However, he was far more revealing in his response to Valentine’s suggestion while speaking to ESPN.com. Valentine had stated that Ortiz decided not to play after the Red Sox traded Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez in August.
"Stopping me (from playing) was the decision of the doctors, management, the manager and me," Ortiz told ESPNDeportes.com. "The team doctor recommended that I stop playing to not make the situation worse for the tendon.”
"... As a player, the game runs through my veins. In the 10 years I have played in Boston, I have been the heart and soul of the organization and not a second has gone by in which David Ortiz, able to go on the field to do what he knows best, he stayed seated
instead," he added.
Ortiz had a decent time on the plate in 2012 as he hit .318 with 23 home-runs and 60 RBIs. He suffered an Achilles’ heel injury in July and played just one game after that. The Red Sox completed the trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers on August 25. Ortiz
was placed on the disabled list on August 27 and did not step onto the plate after that.
In an interview with NBC Sports last Tuesday, Valentine had suggested Ortiz could have played if he had wanted to. Ortiz, who spent six weeks on the disabled list, was expected to take one week to recover from his injury but that did not turn out to be the
case.
Valentine was convinced that Ortiz decided not play anymore after the Red Sox traded three star players to the Dodgers on August 25. He realised the Red Sox were not going to finish the race properly and he did not want to face the uphill challenge.
Ortiz did have an injection designed to speed up the healing process in September. Since the Red Sox were placed at the bottom of American League East Division standings table at that time, he did not pursue the idea of making a comeback.
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