The situation: Game 5, 2008 ALCS, Rays lead the series 3-1
The moment: Ortiz’s three-run home run leads one of the best single-game comebacks in playoff history
Of all the great seasons of Ortiz’s career, 2008 was not one of them. A wrist injury limited him to just 109 games, and his production when he was healthy was very un-Papi-like. His 23 home runs would end up being a career-low, while his .264 average was nearly a 70-point drop from 2007.
Despite Ortiz’s down season, the Red Sox still managed to win 95 games and grab the Wild Card. They defeated the Angels in four games in the ALDS, again without much contribution from Ortiz (.235 average, one extra-base-hit), but fell behind the Rays 3-1 in the ALCS.
With memories of the 2004 and the 2007 ALCS still fresh in the minds of both the Red Sox and Rays, however, it was well understood that the series was far from over.
The Rays pounded Red Sox starter Daisuke Matsuzaka, jumping the ace for five runs over four innings. When the Rays extended the lead to 7-0 in the seventh, it looked like the comeback kings would finally fall short.
The Red Sox offense would finally wake up in the bottom of the seventh, getting on the scoreboard on an RBI single from Dustin Pedroia. That brought Ortiz to the plate with two on and two out, the Red Sox still one big hit away from getting back in the game. Ortiz, of course, would deliver, driving a three-run shot deep into the right-field corner to bring the score the 7-4.
With all the momentum now on their side, the Red Sox would finish the miraculous comeback. A J.D Drew eight-inning home run brought the score within one, and a Coco Crisp RBI single tied the game at 7. Drew would come through again in the ninth, driving a ground-rule double into the right-field bullpen to win the game and extend the series.
Though the Red Sox would go on to lose the series, this moment is arguably the most underrated of Ortiz’s career. As Manny Ramirez would once say, “I guess, you know, when you don’t feel good, and you still get hits, that’s when you know you are a bad man.” Ortiz’s ability to come through in the clutch even when he was not at his best is one of the many reasons he is a Hall of Famer.