SAN FRANCISCO - Boston Red Sox icon David Ortiz, waiting out traffic sitting in the cramped visiting clubhouse at AT&T Park, slowly furls his eyebrows, his dark brown eyes exuding concern.
“How long has he been like that?’’ Ortiz softly says. “How long has he been in a wheelchair? What’s wrong?’’
Ortiz is inquiring about San Francisco Giants Hall of Famer Willie McCovey, 78, who has been confined to a wheelchair for about a decade, and came onto the field Tuesday night to help honor Ortiz in the latest farewell ceremony.
It’s McCovey’s knees, Ortiz is told, that have left him unable to walk after at least 15 surgeries.
Ortiz looks down, swallows, and says in almost a whisper, “Ah, that will catch up to me one day, too, bro.’’
Ortiz may be having the greatest season by a 40-year-old in baseball history, and would be a solid American League MVP candidate if the season ended today. The nine-time All-Star DH is hitting .338 with 16 homers and leading the league with 25 doubles, 55 RBI, a .422 on-base percentage and .728 slugging percentage.
Yet, even in a farewell season that defies the norm, Ortiz is sure this will be it.
“A couple of years ago everyone kept asking, ‘How much longer you going to play?’’’ Ortiz told USA TODAY Sports in a 30-minute interview. “And now, people see you doing your thing, and they’re telling you, “Don’t quit now. We would like to see you play for another year.’ It’s crazy.
“But right now, my mind is made up. Physically, I could do it, but mentally, I’m exhausted. Hopefully, everything keeps going well this year, because right now, everything is going perfect.
“I’m having so much fun, bro. I’m having as much fun as I’ve ever had in my life. I’m having so much fun that I actually can’t believe I’m retiring this year, either.’’
Ortiz breaks into that laugh, so infectious that it touches not only a clubhouse full of ballplayers, but the entire New England community. This is a man who was instrumental in ending the Red Sox’s 86-year championship drought, bringing home three World Series titles since 2004, and who will be immortalized just like Ted Williams, Bill Russell, Bobby Orr and Tom Brady.
“I heard Reggie Jackson give advice to Pedro (Martinez) after that incident that happened between us and the Yankees,’’ Ortiz said, recalling the 2003 brawl during the AL Championship Series. “Reggie was telling him, ‘A Hall of Famer is not only supposed to be good on the field, but you need to carry yourself the right way off the field, too.’ I’ll always remember that.
“Everyone knows I’ve got good numbers on the field, but I think I have even better numbers off the field, because that’s my personality. I love doing things right. I love making sure people have fun. I’ve always had that connection to people.’’
It’s a personality trait that may have always been ingrained, he says, but no one is more responsible for shaping his behavior, and turning him into the most charismatic player in baseball than the late Minnesota Twins Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett.
Puckett mentored a group of young players in Minnesota that included Torii Hunter, LaTroy Hawkins, Eddie Guardado, Jacque Jones and Matt Lawton. He influenced Ortiz so greatly that when he arrived in Boston in 2003 after being released by the Twins, he immediately changed his number to 34, Puckett’s number. The number that likely will never be worn by a Red Sox player after Ortiz retires, too.
“That was my man, I loved him,’’ said Ortiz, who will be honored Friday in Minnesota by the Twins and several of his old teammates. “I remember the day (March 6, 2006) that man died, all of us, we cried like babies. I still think about him all of the time. He was just such a great human being, such a fun person to be around.
“That’s who I grew up in this game always wanting to be like.’’
Mission accomplished, with Ortiz’s popularity so expansive he turned AT&T Park into a lovefest with his last visit to play the Giants. He was greeted with “Papi’’ chants when he emerged from the dugout before Tuesday’s game. The bipartisan crowd yelled his name when he homered in batting practice. Gave him a rousing standing ovation when he strode to the plate as a pinch-hitter in the seventh inning. And screamed in euphoria when he grounded out, but drove in the game-tying run, which led to a 5-3, 10-inning victory.
“I remember a couple of weeks ago when he was hitting all of those homers, and (third baseman) Travis Shaw comes off the field, shaking his head,’’ Red Sox ace David Price said. “He says, “Oh, God, we’re going to stink next year. Our best player is retiring.’
“It was funny, but we all would love him to stay around. He just has that presence. We’re going to miss that.’’
Who could possibly imagine that at 40, Ortiz is swinging the bat better these days than 20-something wonders Mike Trout and Bryce Harper, ranking among the top three in the AL Triple Crown categories, leading the Red Sox atop the East.
“The thing I find myself wondering,’’ Farrell said, “is that he’s 40. It’s his last year. What are we going to do without him? Honestly, that’s what you’re left thinking. He’s that pivotal to our offense. Those guys are not replaceable, you know.
“To think you’re 40 years old, and you’re in the running for the Triple Crown, is unbelievable. Just unbelievable.’’
Ortiz is on pace to shatter the record for the most RBI by a player 40 or older, led by Dave Winfield with 108 in 1992. No 40-year-old has hit more homers than Darrell Evans’ 34 in 1987. And perhaps the greatest farewell season in history was by Williams in 1960, hitting.316 with 29 homers with 72 RBI and a 1.096 OPS.
Ortiz’s 1.150 OPS would be the greatest ever for a 40-plus player, topping Stan Musial (.924, at age 41), Ty Cobb (.921, 40) and Willie Mays (.907).
“I can’t believe what he’s doing now,’’ said Hunter, one of Ortiz’s closest friends, who will be in Minneapolis this weekend. “You can tell there’s no stress on him now. He has nothing else left to prove, just like Muhammad Ali. Ali said he didn’t become a champion until he was defeated. Same with David. When the Twins released him, he could have laid down and was never seen or heard from again. But he kept fighting.
“Look at him now.’’
It’s not Ortiz’s nature to ridicule the Twins for making the worst decision in franchise history to release him - after hitting .272 with 32 doubles, 20 homers and 75 RBI. He instead thanks them for the opportunity. The Twins simply wanted to make room for Jose Morban, who was selected in the Rule 5 draft, and whose major-league career lasted just 61 games. They thought that Ortiz, with his achy knees, perhaps already had his best days. It turns out that he was just getting started.
Ortiz went onto establish a Hall of Fame resume that should land him in Cooperstown, and with his 519 homers, joins Babe Ruth and Jackson as the only players with three World Series titles and at least 500 homers.
“I ain’t going to lie to you,’’ Ortiz said, “I was crushed at the time. Minnesota was the only thing I had known. I was leaving my boys. But I kept doing what I’ve done my whole life, and that was proving people wrong. I was always the guy that had to go through the toughest time to get where I need to be.
“What was funny is that when I played in Minnesota, they didn’t even know they had a major-league baseball team. I used to walk around the street and people didn’t know who the hell we were. Nobody used to come to the Metrodome to watch games. Going to the Metrodome to watch a game was like sacrificing one of your kids.
“The thing that helped me was getting away from that turf. I got to the big leagues when I was 21, and a year later, I had so much pain in my body because of that turf. It was the worst. I went to Fenway, and the pain was gone.
“Looking back, everything worked out pretty damn good.’’
A year from now, he’ll likely be working with the Red Sox, perhaps as a special assistant. He’s never had a closer relationship with the front office, he said, than with Dave Dombrowski, president of baseball operations. He gushes his praise for owners John Henry and Tom Werner. And man, does he ever love the cohesiveness of the Red Sox clubhouse.
“That’s what keeps me going now,’’ Ortiz said. “I wouldn’t be having this season without these guys. I didn’t want to just have a good season, I wanted to have a season that means something, that leads to a championship.
“But no matter what happens, I couldn’t ask for anything more. I had a career longer than what I expected. We won championships. I made a lot of friends. What could be better, but I’d love to send everybody home happy one more time.’’
