Ortiz extended through 2010 (with 2011 club option)
We've been hearing about the Red Sox's extension of David Ortiz being "imminent" for about a week now. Today, it became official.
David Ortiz will play in a Red Sox uniform through at least 2010.
I'm at work, so I wasn't able to hear the press conference live, but here are some tidbits that I picked up from various message boards.
Theo opened by announcing that, on behalf of the Sox, David Ortiz will get an extension to 2010, with a club option for 2011. He mentioned that Papi is a player who means so much for the organization, and wants to stay in Boston. David Ortiz then said that he's happy to be in Boston, and proud to be a Red Sox player. He said that he wants to finish his career in Boston, and he thanked Lucchino, Henry, Werner and Theo.
John Henry then said that in the negotiation w/ Papi, he kept expressing his love for Boston—the city, the fans, the organization. Henry said it was a first for him as an owner — that he'd never had a player say something like that during a negotiation.
When asked why Ortiz didn't opt for free agency, he said something along the lines of, "You have a lot of people coming right at you when you are on the market. I feel great playing in Boston. I feel like this is my house. I want to protect my house. I like to put everything I have out there every single day. I thank the Red Sox for doing this while they still have control of me."
(Love that quote about wanting to protect 'his house.' David Ortiz is amazing.)
Theo was asked "Why sign David Ortiz, and why now?" Again, this is paraphrased. Not an exact quote.
I can't think of a player who contributes in so many different ways. He embodies what we want a player to be. He has worked hard, supports his teammates, sees big picture, has a smile all the time, sets right mood, means a lot to our franchise, in the Dominican, throughout Boston, throughout Red Sox Nation. We think he will continue to contribute that much and more. Why now? I think it is a good time. The club approached David about exploring the extension. 98% of work was done in spring training. The finishing touches were just finalized. Many thought we wouldn't be able to keep David if he hit free agency. We put a value on players and stick to it.
Ortiz then praised playing in Fenway, and what it means to play in front of the greatest fans in baseball:
"I keep telling the new guys, 'Wait until you play your first game at Fenway Park. You might need a diaper... You might need a diaper, homey. It's gonna be like that every day.' It's outstanding."
For the Red Sox, this is one of those players that, no matter what he is demanding, or what it would have taken to sign him, the team absolutely had to keep that guy in a Red Sox uniform. David Ortiz means SO much to my team. I can't even express how grateful I am that this man will be tearing shit up for us for 4-5 more years after 2006. Yes, PECOTA and other sabermetric projections have his numbers seriously declining. Yes, we may have overpaid a bit for Ortiz, just like we did to keep Varitek here in the 2004 off-season. But the bottom line is, you can't let a guy like Ortiz walk away. Having him not retire a Red Sox would be a mockery. It looks like he probably will now. And I am happy.
Can this signing officially cement Ortiz as the "Yaz" of my generation?
David Ortiz will play in a Red Sox uniform through at least 2010.
I'm at work, so I wasn't able to hear the press conference live, but here are some tidbits that I picked up from various message boards.
Theo opened by announcing that, on behalf of the Sox, David Ortiz will get an extension to 2010, with a club option for 2011. He mentioned that Papi is a player who means so much for the organization, and wants to stay in Boston. David Ortiz then said that he's happy to be in Boston, and proud to be a Red Sox player. He said that he wants to finish his career in Boston, and he thanked Lucchino, Henry, Werner and Theo.
John Henry then said that in the negotiation w/ Papi, he kept expressing his love for Boston—the city, the fans, the organization. Henry said it was a first for him as an owner — that he'd never had a player say something like that during a negotiation.
When asked why Ortiz didn't opt for free agency, he said something along the lines of, "You have a lot of people coming right at you when you are on the market. I feel great playing in Boston. I feel like this is my house. I want to protect my house. I like to put everything I have out there every single day. I thank the Red Sox for doing this while they still have control of me."
(Love that quote about wanting to protect 'his house.' David Ortiz is amazing.)
Theo was asked "Why sign David Ortiz, and why now?" Again, this is paraphrased. Not an exact quote.
I can't think of a player who contributes in so many different ways. He embodies what we want a player to be. He has worked hard, supports his teammates, sees big picture, has a smile all the time, sets right mood, means a lot to our franchise, in the Dominican, throughout Boston, throughout Red Sox Nation. We think he will continue to contribute that much and more. Why now? I think it is a good time. The club approached David about exploring the extension. 98% of work was done in spring training. The finishing touches were just finalized. Many thought we wouldn't be able to keep David if he hit free agency. We put a value on players and stick to it.
Ortiz then praised playing in Fenway, and what it means to play in front of the greatest fans in baseball:
"I keep telling the new guys, 'Wait until you play your first game at Fenway Park. You might need a diaper... You might need a diaper, homey. It's gonna be like that every day.' It's outstanding."
For the Red Sox, this is one of those players that, no matter what he is demanding, or what it would have taken to sign him, the team absolutely had to keep that guy in a Red Sox uniform. David Ortiz means SO much to my team. I can't even express how grateful I am that this man will be tearing shit up for us for 4-5 more years after 2006. Yes, PECOTA and other sabermetric projections have his numbers seriously declining. Yes, we may have overpaid a bit for Ortiz, just like we did to keep Varitek here in the 2004 off-season. But the bottom line is, you can't let a guy like Ortiz walk away. Having him not retire a Red Sox would be a mockery. It looks like he probably will now. And I am happy.
Can this signing officially cement Ortiz as the "Yaz" of my generation?
posted by Jennifer at 12:55 PM
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