Ortiz: Sox could use another power bat

Bring on Mark Teixeira!!

Ortiz is 100 % correct...Sox need to replace HIM with someone who is capable of actually hitting those numbers, instead of wishing a declining old icon whose best days are long gone to produce. BTW, wonder if he is still wearing that "Got Manny" shirt he was wearing in the clubhouse after the Game 4 Tampa loss ??? Hope Sox know it's time to move Papi before it's too late. His bat speed is way down...move him while you still can. Wish I was wrong....but honestly do not think I am.

They need another 30 HR bat to replace the one that Ortiz lost along the way....

A Sox line up of:

Ellsbury
Pedroia
Ortiz (healthy AND in shape please)
Youk
Lowell
Drew
Bay
Catcher position
Lowrie

With good bench depth this team should hit about 200 HRs and 300 or so doubles. Keep the .OBP up and the whiffing to a minimum (along with the cheap pop-ups Ortiz displayed for most of 2008) and this is a very, very competitiive line up. Ortiz, Bay and Youk are all 30 HR guys and Lowell and Drew when healthy are 20 plus. The key is Ellsbury learning how to get on base and stealing every chance he gets.

We can also say that if Ortiz was doing his job hitting third we would have won the world series. Stop finding execuses, come on. Ortiz did have wrist injury but I didn't see much fight and responsibility in Ortiz in the second half of the season. If he thinks he can't hit with anybody except Manny behind him, he should really consider ask to be traded to whatever team is paying the highest price for Manny.

What happened to the surgery? He rested for like 5 weeks during the season and it did not help, why would more rest help now? I predict he has problems with the wrist in spring training and ends up having the surgery and misses the bulk of the season...JUST HAVE THE SURGERY NOW!!!

cabrera is from venezuela

Did Ortiz mention his declining productivity and less than peak conditioning as a possible reason the Sox might be power-starved going forward? Just wondering.

Miguel Cabrera isn't Dominican, he's from Venezuela.

Cabrera is Venezuelan. Might want to correct that.

I've got the perfect power hitter for the Sox to add:

David Ortiz...remember when he always got the big hit? Seems like so long ago.

I'll take Salty from Texas and Tex from the Angels and start the season today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can't stand how quick people are to jump all over players, Ortiz will have a come back year next year I guarentee it. The guy has been the most clutch hitter for us and because he was human this season everyone thinks hes going to be bad, etc. I'm sick of it.

Pick up Benjie Molina and get some bullpen help, this team is more than capable of winning the world series next year with what that'd give us.

ripping oritiz? wow, you guys must be too young to remember pre-ortiz. for all he's done, he can do no wrong by me. i trust in papi.

blah, blah--there's a reason why we're fans and not players or management

ortiz is the one that needs to be replaced. he is on the back 9.

Yeh the Sox have a good problem, they have Youk and Bay, Drew and Lowell in the classic corner power positions, and except for career years, they just aren't that type of hitter. So we are powerstarved. What a treatr for teams that get a ARod or a Jeff Kent to provide pop in the middle. We need a Willy Mo Pena who actually performs... Ortiz has got to hit his stride or we need 2 guys.

Teixeira would be the ideal signee for the Sox this off-season: An elite, power bat to slot between Youkilis at three and Bay at five...and a resulting infield of three Gold Glover's.

If Ortiz were unloaded in order to make room, I'd be all for it. He projects to be a roster liability from this point forward, especially if he continues to bat third.

Gee, if only there were someone available... some playoff record-shattering, greatest 2-strike hitter in the game, person who could step in to the middle of that line-up and provide the clutch hitting (and protection of Ortiz) that this team will need to seriously compete for a ring...... Ah, if only there were someone. If only Mannys grew on trees! They're so easy to cast aside and run out of town on a rail, but damned if there aren't so few of them scampering about!

Don't worry, Ortiz. Jason Bay is here!! He'll easily strike a similar fear from that 6 spot. Not to mention the shoe-in hall of fame run production numbers this team enjoyED.

As predicted, welcome to Ruth II... now you're into it. Enjoy!

Miguel cabrera is from Venezuela not from the domenican republic.......

Big Popi is still the man - yes he had a bad year but those of us who didn't please throw the first stone. We put these guys up on pedestal and when they let us down we blame them, they are just people and 99% of the time they give us their best. I think the time for waiting and seeing is over have the surgery before you blow spring training -Good luck

what is Bay? chopped liver? 37 HRS during the reg season and playoffs isn't considered power?

I don't want to hear any of you fools chear for Ortiz next year...it gets harder and harder to be a Red Sox fan because we get lumped in with dis-loyal idiots like you...Ortiz is our guy through good and bad...you want to act like an idiot chear for the Yankees...PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!

Hilarious to hear all the folks down on Ortiz. Two world championships ain't enough for the basement dwellers, I guess. And who knew there were so many doctors among us?

I predict a monster season.

Jesus H. Christ. . . look at what all of you have turned into. . . another group of Yankee-like "what have you done for me lately" fans. We lose to a better team (Rays) in Game 7 of the ALCS and this is the kind of nonsense that gets posted??? Newsflash, everyone--we're not going to win it every year. Anyone who wasn't over that loss the next day needs to get his head examined.

I agree with Ortiz--we need another bat to solidify the offense. I'm hoping this comes in the form of Mark Teixeira. I don't care about the logjam it'll create in the infield, just get the guy!

Tired of hearing Ortiz whine about the lineup. Great guy but man, could he please get in shape and just play ball with what's out there? I mean JD Drew and Jason Bay are hitting around you and you still want someone else? How many teams would love to have Bay and Drew. Granted, Drew is feast of famine but seriously, the only hole in our lineup was Varitek.

Migy Cabera is from Venezula!! By the way, Tito & Epstein are the brains of the the Sox and they know exactly what they need to be the champs again. Papy should stick to practicing his swing.

While I agree they need pop, the reason they need power is that Ortiz can't stop stuffing his fat face and get into a shape that doesn't represent a cylinder.

Big Papi needs Teixeira batting behind him, preceeded by Ellsbury and Pedroia and followed by Youkilis and Bay. Now there's a potent lineup!!

Ortiz needs to worry about getting to the gym, getting himself healthy, and not concerning himself with the obvious...of course they need more power. Every team wants more power.

He should join Youk in AZ and lose some weight so his knees don't give out every June or July.

Teixeira is a terrific player but makes no sense for the Sox unless they move either Lowell or Youk. Both are half the price that Teixeira will command and both are excellent hitters, excellent fielders, and great performers under pressure. There is some question as to where Lowell will be after he rehabs, but I suspect he has another couple of very good years left at a minimum. There really isn't anywhere to put Teixeira and I suspect he will end up in the Bronx.

We are all hoping that Big Papi heals and returns to form. I don't think that this injury, which clearly made his swing less effective, is an indication that he is past his prime. His prime should be right now. I'll leave it to the medical experts to decide whether he needs surgery or not. If he does, you know that the Sox will see that it happens. As for his wish for a 30 home run hitter, unless such a person plays shortstop or catcher (or Drew is already out for the season), I can't imagine where this bat will come from.

When Big Pappi speaks we all listen. I hope he goes to Arizona training or some other dedicated training regime to make sure he comes to camp in the best shape possible.

David has lost bat speed and is on his way down unfortunately. It will not take long for the boo birds to start with "slow poppy" not big poppy. Good guy--slow bat.

You all have no clue!!!! All you do is talk bad about red sox players and players that had brought Boston championships. You are all frontrunners and not true fans. How can you talk bad about Big Papi. You all have to clue!! just don't talk, because it makes me laught to hear people like you all. We will be fine next year!! You all negative people who talk bad about your own players are not true fans and do not know how baseball works. Everyone have off years. And when you are hurt like Papi and Beckett you can not have good years. Just wait till next year, they will have great years!!

Anyone who thinks Youk is a Clean-up hitter and the Sox don't need a 30 HR guy is not a credible fan! Ortiz struggled not because of his personal missing of Manny. He struggled because he was pitched around just enough never to get into a groove.
Youkilis is a nice player, indispensible like Pedroia, BUT lets not create a mythical player. Youk is a valued #2 or #3 hitter (depending on what you have ahead of him. Ortiz should be #4 with the combo of Lowell/Bay/Drew (in order of hotness) behind him. Can one of those gys be 30 HR potential? Maybe. If not, Texeira could be valuable if the value is right.
Big Papi needs a .300+ ,35 HR guy with him in order to really produce. He is not manny and never will be. He is a .285 lifetime hitter for a reason- b/c he has holes in his offense! Hles that Manny covered-up. And Ortiz knows it!

Lose some of the stomach fat Ortiz, or you will not have a long life. Has anyone checked your blood to see if you might be close to having Type 2 diabetes? Come into camp in the best shape possible. Do what Vince Wilfork did and start changing your diet and do some damn cardio to burn the fat off your overworked body.

I would love to see you come into Spring Training lean and mean and ready for a HUGE season. Getting the weight off will only help your knees and the rest of your health in the long run.

Teixiera will not come to Boston - these writers always seem to gloss over the history between the club and Mark T. Boras will use the Red Sox offer to drive up the price, and he will either get Arte Moreno to pay up, or the Yankees, or perhaps someone else. Baltimore gets mentioned a lot, but seriously, why would you want to play there for a team that will have trouble cracking .500? Further, what are we, the Yankees now? We just buy the biggest bat every offseason? That shouldn't be the formula.The Nation better start thinking of some alternatives or get used to the current lineup, which is very, very good. The big question is whether Sox will entrust Lowrie with full time duties, and whether we can stabilize the bullpen somewhat on the cheap. Also, why not kick the tires on some of the young pitching that might be on the market. Some rumors include Matt Cain from SF. Don't know why he'd be on the market but let's go after that type of player rather than spend 120MM on Tex for 3 productive years and 3 possible decline years!

Ortiz is reflecting his own failure to clutch-hit - particularly in the Rays Series - when he says the Sox need to add a 30-HR guy. He will likely never be the slugger he once was - age & wrist issues - and he "misses" Manny behind him, taking the psycological load off himself. The Sox should trade him (and Lugo) this winter if they can get a catcher that can hit and a slugging first baseman (can you say Texeria?)

I think Cafardo knows that, considering he used the term "other Sox players" in between those noted Dominican players and Cabrera in the sentence.

Well, Rob, that assumes a healthy and productive Lowell and Ortiz and that Youk will hit more HRs than he ever has. And it puts a guy at leadoff who hasn't proven he can get on base. Me, I'd prefer:
Youk, 3b
Pedroia, 2b
Drew, RF
Teixera, 1B
Ortiz, DH
Bay, LF
Lowrie, SS
Anyone but Varitek, C
Ellsbury, CF
Tons of OBP at the top, lots of run producers through #7 hole, less pressure on everyone in the lineup. That's what Teixera does -- makes our offense like 2002-04. Yes, it leaves Lowell out -- are you SURE he'll be back and the same guy he was in 2007? Are you SURE about Ortiz? Ellsbury?
That's what Teixera does for the lineup.

did he mention that he needs the juice? he lika the juice!

doesnt say Cabrera is Dominican, comes after "as well as other Sox teammates" Think they're all Dominican too?

You people are unbelievable. Ortiz had one bad, injury-plagued season in which his knee and wrist were both never completely healthy, and you're ready to write him off as "declining"? and "old". I guess I should come to expect this out of knee-jerk "Red Sox Nation", but it's still pretty unsettling. Give the guy a break, look what he did the year before. Please offer some enlightened thought, instead of just treading on the surface.

Papi gets a pass, this does not mean a #3 or 4 spot in the lineup, but a pass, hey, i know its all about winning now, and not about yesterday, I remeber great moments from Papi, like the 04 ALCS walk off homer, the ALCS walk of single....maybe he is done , maybe not, but regardless, PASS for Papi, show him the love he deserves, he does charity and more charity, is open to the press, shows up at the ballpark each and everyday, is never late, nor ask to be late to spring training...has given us great moments, so if it is over, so be it...but dont toss him under the bus ....PASS

He didn't say Cabrera was Domincan...read it again! He mentioned a couple of Domican players, then said "as well as other Sox teammates and Detroit's Miguel Cabrera". Nothing for Nick to correct!

he didn't say that cabrera was dominican. " as well as other Sox teammates and Detroit's Miguel Cabrera." that "as well as" starts a new phrase. he's not saying the other sox teammates are dominican. learn English grammar, people.

Ortiz will never return to his prior self. That is why he is begging for help. Boston doesn't have to worry about another world series for quite a few more years. TB pitching is better and when the Yanks spend their 150 million this winter their pitching will be better. So sit back and take what everyone else gives you. Your catcher wants HOW much to sit on his butt and not put up quality numbers. Dustin is the only baseball player on the team that deserves credit for this season.

I truly understand everyone's loyalty to Ortiz. But the sad fact is he is declining, overweight, has a hand issue, lost a good deal of his bat speed and is one dimensional----which would be fine is that skill was at the level of a few years back. He is declining rapidly before your eyes and if the playoffs didn't show you this, you were not paying attention. He will still hit around 30, drive in around 100 because of the players around him. He is not your 3 hole any longer. Honestly, if Manny WAS the reason Ortiz hit so well, then you have to move him. He isn't the man you saw 3 years ago....sorry, but it's true. WHY WOULD HE BEG FOR HELP ??? If he did anything remotely like he should have in the playoffs, the Sox are playing the Phillies.

Bring on Miguel Cabrera !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So i suppose the guy who hit .315 with 29 hrs and 115 or so rbis deserves no credit. Neither does that guy who went 16-6 with a mid 3 era who had cancer not 2 years ago. Nor do the men who, despite injuries all year, left all they had out on the field each and every day because they love the game and their team. No, this is just an awful team who really shouldn't even bother playing next year because they are just going to get beat. You people have no love for the game. We don't need to win the world series every year to have a team worth rooting for. I'd rather root for a bunch of decent guys who try their hardest through injuries and adversity to give the fans something to root for. Real fans are fans no matter the outcome.

Jeez. What a sad sack collection of fairweathers we have here.

You all need to examine the facts. There is absolutely zero evidence of a decline in Ortiz.

I saw a remark about "knee problems every June." That was Manny, not Ortiz. Ortiz has only had two seasons with the Sox with less than 550 at bats, this season and his first season (Where he platooned with Jeremy Giambi initially). There is no history injury to speak off, and he has averaged 150 games a season throughout his Boston career, which is accounted for by general rest and interleague games.

Bat speed? The guy has had ONE bad season. ONE! Note that many power bats around the league had down seasons.

There is no noticeable decline in his numbers. The only number that's been in seeming decline is his home runs, which still came to a respectable 23 while missing almost a third of the season. If one were to project his numbers from the time he played over a full season, he would've hit around 34 homers, which is around where he sat last season.

He drew just as many walks as usual. His plate discipline is pretty clearly at its usual pace, people just seem to scrutinize him more than most. His OBP was just over a hundred points higher than his AVG, which is a mark of good plate discipline. He wasn't striking out any more than usual either.

His best month of the season was May, just before he went down on the DL. May had his best average and slugging of the entire season (Shy of a VERY short July). The trend seemed to indicate that he was getting into a groove. This is further purported by the fact he historically has a pretty slow April before clicking into a groove in May and steadily improving straight through the rest of the season. It can be pretty easily assumed that, had he not gotten hurt, odds are heavy that he would've continued his upward momentum and had a typical Ortiz season.

Evidence is there that implies he's more likely to have a bounce back year than a further decline. Maybe you people should try actually researching the stats and trends before playing armchair manager.

Simple!resign Manny.Manny IMO was led to believe that he was going to get a new satisfactory deal from the Sox if he held up his end of the bargain.He came to camp in the best shape of his career as a Redsock.He tore the cover off the ball the 1st month of the season.When it became obvious to him that the Sox weren't going to give him a new deal he tanked.Iknow this opinion will draw nothing but flak from the nation but I have been a Sox fan for some 45 of my 53 years so if the nation doesn't like it ,so be it. fact is that Manny just maybe the greatest righthand hitter the game has ever seen.

learn how to read. it doesnt say he's dominican

gee how quick we forget come on get real...i think we owe Ortiz that if he says the wrist needs the rest...It was HIM who really made the difference WHY we won the whole thing twice not Manny...remember all the late innings walk offs home runs...hum...I have been around since Ted Williams and NEVER saw clutch hitting like that MAN Ortiz....NEVER...He is still very good player..just thought i would put my two cents in ...

I love Red Sox fans. This guy did nothing but produce for this team for year after year. He had a slow start last year, then rounded into form, then he got hurt just as he was starting to rake. He had a tough time coming back from the injury and now you all want to get rid of the guy. Thank God none of you are running the team. When healthy Ortiz is one of the five best bats in baseball. What's smarter: trading him for prospects now and spending enormous resources to try to get another power bat of his caliber, or being patient and simply having faith in a guy who isn't by any stretch of the imagination "old" or washed up? You'd think he was 39, not 33 from listening to all y'all.

Dustin is the ONLY player on the team that deserves credit? Are you kidding? What about Youk? He played 1st base, 3rd base, even the outfield and played well. He had one of his best offensive years. He does whatever is asked of him. His only problem appears to be the little hissyfits he throws after a bad at bat but who cares about that? What about Jon Lester? That kid was phenomenal! Well okay there weren't a lot of them playing great ball but we at least had three...not one. Plus I think we need to give Papi and Mike Lowell another chance to come back from the injury plagued season.

Wow, how ungreatful are those people who call for Papi to be traded. This is the guy that was hurt when he saw a woman crying when the sox were down 0-3 in 2004. He was the one that made it his mission to turn those tears into cheers and this is the love you show him. No wonder people dont like it here. The man is was hurt and I could not bare to hear fans boo him like they did during the play offs....bunch of ungreatful band wagon jumpers.

Everyone wants hitting and pitching help...but if Ortiz lived up to his expected stats, the SOX would be celebrating another champinship. He should tend to his own business and stop critizing his teammates!

to all the people on this board who still stand up for Ortiz: you are just like every other moron who lives in MA -- you stand up for people who don't deserve it .. i.e. John Kerry (who hasn't done a damn thing for this state, yet you people keep voting him into office).
Ortiz? Yeah, he WAS awesome when he juiced. Now that he is off the sauce, we are seeing the player that he really is, which is a guy who can't run, field and can barely hit.
Stop being a bunch of losers and call a spade a spade . Ortiz is washed up and wear glasses when it's dark out.

Lineup:
Ellsbury
Pedroia
Ortiz
Youk
Bay
Lowell
Drew
not Tek/Cash (threw out a higher percentage of runners than Tek catching a Wake and is a better hitter, barely)
Lowrie

Rob you cant take Bay out of the 5 or 6 hole after last season. People have to go where they fit.

Ortiz had a bad year. He was not healthy give him a break. I think they should bring up Lars Anderson start him and Texira will go to the Angeles or Yankees. The Boston will just make them bid higher. They really just need to improve there bu;pen they could get maybe a J.C Romero for Lowell.

All of you trashing Ortiz are not pre-2004 Red Sox fans..the guy has a bad season because of an injury and you're so quick to trash him. If he has another bad season then you all can talk, but until 2009 quit trashing one of the best hitters we've ever had!

The fan base of this team has turned into a bunch of trolls. We make the playoffs 5 out of the last six years, come a few injuries short of another world series trip, and peoople still cannot adopt a PMA in regards to players who have historically produced well above league average for over 90 percent of their time here. David Ortiz is one season removed from the most productive offensive season of his career statistically, and he's washed up?
The guy had an off year, but he's gonna be productive in the next one. he's a relative bargain at his salary, and now he's a bum? I don't get it. If you hate the sox root for someone else.. if not, get on board and stfu.

Like to see Tex at first, trade Lowell to Phillies for a conditional player to be named later. ( depending on how Lowell plays in spring training). Give up Clay for salti, let Tek go. Trade Crisp and lb. Carter to S.D. for s.s. Green .Trade Lugo to Detroit, pay 9 mill. of his contract. Any problems with that?

Papi may have been a steriod guy. He was a .275, doubles hitter in Minny, who released him in 2002. On to Boston where he meets Nomar - big numbers are the result, until the crackdown on steriods. Wrist doesn't heal that well...Mmmmh, coincidence, I don't think so...time to move on.

Read comment #37--I hate to admit it, but that one sounds spot on. How else are they going to land Texeria if not by giving up a replacement (Ortiz)?

Redsox fans are the worst! How can you bail out on Papi so quickly after 04 & 07. Sometimes I hate to be a Redsox fan. Sign Papi for 10 years at 10 Million per - He deserves it!

Article never says Cabrera is dominican, learn to read you morons!!

Would have been nice if Ortiz hit in the playoffs.

Ortiz doesn't realize that HE'S supposed to be the 30 home run guy

Yeah, let's get rid of Ortiz when the Sox need power. Forget about adding someone to hit behind Ortiz, let's just dump him?? Bunch of F'ing Retarded Idiots!!!!!

You losers are a major reason players want nothing to do with Boston (& why Manny wanted out since 2002).

Ortiz played in 109 games and hit 23 Hr's (while getting IBB @ same rate) in 2008. Must have forgot Ortiz's play to lead the 2004 & 2007 WS titles, huh?

Actually, the thing to do is drop Papi to #5, put Texiera @ #4, & Youk @ #3. Dump Lowell to Philly, bat Bay 6th, Drew 7th, Catcher #8, SS #9. Oh yeah, make Coco stay in same 4th OF role and get a new freaking SS!

"Dustin is the only baseball player on the team that deserves credit for this season." Did he pitch, too? Sox tied for 4th in AL ERA, tying for 9th in all of baseball. Plus, Drew saved the Sox when Ortiz went down early, and last time I checked, Youkilis hit .312 with 43 doubles, 29 homers and 115 RBI. Take off the blinders, please.

I don't think that anyone wants to bad-mouth Ortiz. It happens out of frustration because he didn't perform even reasonably well in the post-season. You can be happy and grateful that players have helped win a Championship (or 2), but you can't let loyalty get in the way of winning again. If Papi is on the down-side, he shouldn't get a free ride by fans or the Red Sox. Theo Epsteins goal is to win a Championship EVERY season and give the team the best chance to do that. Sure, you can't win every season, but that is what the objective should be. Maybe Papi gets a free pass because maybe he was never at 100% after the wrist injury, but it should be healed sufficiently for next season. What Ortiz needs to do is to give HIMSELF a better chance to produce by getting in decent shape.

"Papi may have been a steriod guy. He was a .275, doubles hitter in Minny, who released him in 2002. On to Boston where he meets Nomar - big numbers are the result, until the crackdown on steriods. Wrist doesn't heal that well...Mmmmh, coincidence, I don't think so...time to move on."

That's idiotic.

For one, steroids do not put the bat on the ball, nor does it give you a good eye for the walk, two things that Ortiz has been excellent at in Boston.

Secondly, the consistent playing time has likely accounted for his home run totals more than anything. He has the rare distinction of being a player whose home run totals have increased almost every season (And this trend started years before coming to Boston). Ortiz doesn't have any of the tell tale signs of steroid abuse (He's always been a big guy, never had a history of being quick to anger, etc). Coming back from the wrist injury was hard because it's difficult in general to come back from something like that when your primary job is hitting. A knee injury is one thing, but a big part of batting and bat speed is in the wrists.

I’m tired of people saying that we are the Yankees now because we want to go after Teixiera and need to pay him big money to sign him. We are not the Yankees. We have Ellsbury, Pedroia, Lester, Youkilis, Delcarmen, Papelbon, Masterson, Buccholz, and Lowrie who are all young and came up through our farm system and play active roles on the team. You can’t expect every player you have to be from your farm system and cheap. You need all-star guys on your team, and even though most of the guys I just mentioned are stars, we need a big bat and a good hitter on our team in addition to what we have.
Everyone who keeps saying “where would we put Teixiera?” are idiots. You move Lowell. I love Lowell as much as the next guy and his defense is great, but let’s face it, he’s getting older, he suffered a BIG injury last year, and even if he comes back and stays healthy all year, you can’t count on a guy that old and that beat up the previous year to bounce back and be a “great” player. Teixiera is a “great” player and he is young and will be there for years to come. Lowell is gone in 2 years. So would you rather keep an aged Mike Lowell who we dont know what exactly we will get from him next year, and lose out on Teixiera who will be there for years and produce every year, or lose Lowell for 2 years while picking up Teixiera who will replace him with better numbers and just as good defense (when Youk moves to 3rd)? I'd rather lose Lowell.

As for the batting order, Youk should bat 3rd , then Ortiz, then Bay. Youk is the ideal 3 hitter (he is the best all-around hitter on the team, hitting for average and good power) and Ortiz IS NOT a 3 hitter. If you get Tex, then he bats 4th, then Ortiz, then Bay.