David Ortiz Flips Bat, Yankees Fans Flip Out
By Paul Prims
It’s a story that goes back to 2003, when the Red Sox first showed they were on equal footing with the New York Yankees. Since then, David Ortiz has simply terrorized Yankees pitching. It doesn’t matter if he has had Manny Ramirez as a partner or not, Ortiz has dominated whenever he’s seen pinstripes.
The latest episode occurred during the recently completed three game series last weekend at Yankee Stadium in which Ortiz went deep yet again. This time it was Hiroki Kuroda who served up a towering gopher ball.
June 2, 2013; Bronx, NY, USA; Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz (34) runs to the dugout after hitting a home run against the New York Yankees during the fifth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports
But to Yankees fans this wasn’t just another home run. It was part of a pattern that Yankees pitching “refuses” to stop. As he’s done many times before, Ortiz flipped his bat toward the Sox dugout after his moonshot and once again made his way slowly around the bases.
And Yankees fans are fed up. They see it as another instance of Big Papi showing them up because Yankees pitching just can’t get him out.
Their answer to this problem, as its been every year since the Sox stopped being the weak little brother, is for Yankees pitchers to hit Ortiz on purpose so that he won’t crowd the plate and continue to dominate and flip his bats after home runs and other big hits.
Unfortunately for them, Yankees manager Joe Girardi doesn’t agree. Instead of head hunting, Girardi is actually asking his pitchers to try to get Ortiz out rather than put him on first base with a plunking. This causes the fans to have a real problem with their skipper.
If you ask me, this griping about Big Papi over the years is sour grapes from Yankees fans. They have finally met their match in a player who is not afraid of their team and their ridiculous “mystique and aura” nonsense and they can’t stand it.
May 30, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Boston Red Sox first baseman David Ortiz (34) celebrates hitting a home run during the seventh inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports
It truly drives them insane that this is THE guy that punched holes in the idea that the Red Sox would never beat the Yankees or be their equal. They know he’s responsible for this new world order that changed forever in 2004 and, for once, they have no answer. Except to hit Ortiz instead of trying to figure out a way to get him out.
Yankees fans always talk about the class their team exudes and about the “Yankee Way.” Yet here they are saying the Red Sox throw at their players all the time so the Yanks have a right to retaliate. Maybe they have a point.
But what they don’t seem to realize and what makes them sound ridiculous is that the Red Sox don’t ever face an antagonist in the Yankees lineup that is quite like Ortiz, so the Sox just go about their business while Yankee pitching sweats whenever they see Big Papi.
It all makes for great comedy and delicious irony from the viewpoint of Red Sox fans everywhere. Big Papi is a constant reminder to Yankees fans of everything they lost in 2004 and they will continue to be bitter until the day he retires. It’s a show Sox fans hope never ends.