David Ortiz of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic was the sole person inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday according to Olivia Jakeil of People Magazine. The selection of Ortiz was an interesting one because Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds continue to be overlooked by the selection committee. Over the years there have been allegations that Bonds and Clemens took banned substances according to Mike Axisa of CBS Sports.
Ortiz was the face of the Red Sox franchise from 2003 to 2016. Prior to that, he played six seasons with the Minnesota Twins from 1997 to 2002. A 10-time All-Star, he played in the midsummer classic for five straight years from 2004 to 2008, four straight years from 2010 to 2013, and again in 2016. At age 46, Ortiz is the youngest person to be elected into Cooperstown.
In 2408 games, Ortiz had 541 home runs and 1768 runs batted in, with a batting average of .286. In 10091 plate appearances, Ortiz scored 1419 runs, and had 2472 hits, 632 doubles, 19 triples, 17 stolen bases, 1319 walks, 4765 total bases, two sacrifice bunts, and 92 sacrifice flies. The most stunning aforementioned statistic is the fact that Ortiz, at 6’3″, 230 pounds, actually had two sacrifice bunts. He had one in the 2001 season with the Twins, and the other in 2008 with the Red Sox.
Throughout Ortiz’s career, he was the leader in several offensive categories. They include an American League-leading 54 home runs and 137 runs batted in during 2006. That year he also led the junior circuit in walks (119) and total bases (355). Ortiz also led Major League Baseball with 148 runs batted in during 2005, the American League in walks (111) and on-base percentage (.445) in 2007, and Major League Baseball in doubles (48), and slugging percentage (.620) in 2016. Also in his final season of Major League Baseball six years ago, Ortiz led the American League with 127 runs batted in. Based on Ortiz’s outstanding success at the end of his career, it was a little bit off a surprise he retired at the age of 40.
Ortiz also did damage in the postseason. He won three World Series with Boston (2004, 2007 and 2013), and batted .289 with 17 home runs and 61 runs batted in during 85 games. Ortiz was also the 2004 American League Championship Series Most Valuable Player (.387, three home runs and 11 runs batted in), and the 2013 World Series MVP (.688, 11 hits in 16 at bats).
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
