The Boston Globe tries to dissect what’s wrong with Red Sox slugger David Ortiz.
The season has not grown long enough for David Ortiz to worry about his statistics, only for him to grow weary about other people asking about them.
A pack of reporters approached Ortiz after the Red Sox’ 2-1 victory yesterday, and he knew why. “I’ll be fine, bro,” Ortiz said. “That’s it.” He poked a pair of diamond earrings into his lobes and said no more.
Ortiz and the Red Sox contend 12 games and 47 at-bats is not a large enough sample for there to be any concern over Ortiz’s dismal statistics. He is batting .170 and slugging .191. Of his eight hits, seven are singles and none are home runs. He has struck out 14 times and walked six.
Hitting coach Dave Magadan diagnosed Ortiz’s issue late last week. Ortiz has been cocking his hands into a hitting position too late, the same problem that has crept up on Ortiz when struggles surfaced in the past, Magadan said.
Late last week, Magadan showed Ortiz two pictures, one from last year during a hot streak and one from this year. In the first, Ortiz had his hands back, ready to swing, while the ball was halfway to the plate. In the second picture, Ortiz was in an identical position, but the pitch had nearly reached the plate.
Magadan emphasized that readiness is Ortiz’s main issue. Ortiz has not been hitting the ball to the opposite field and producing familiar Wall Ball doubles, but Magadan said opponents have been pitching him hard and inside. Magadan also said he has witnessed no effects from the wrist injury that plagued Ortiz late last season and in the playoffs. While Magadan had identified the problem, he was not concerned with it. He and Ortiz worked on fixing it Saturday and Magadan is happy with the results.
Hopefully for BoSox fans, Big Papi’s struggles are a combination mechanical issues and not getting enough at bats to this point. He did eventually find his swing last year after a horrid April, so again hopefully he irons things out. Then again, this could be a byproduct of his age and injury history. It’s tough to tell after just 12 games what kind of hitter Ortiz will be this year, but we should at least let him get through April and part of May before jumping to any conclusions.
