King Of Clutch by Jared Carrabis
"A guy like me, I don't like to play extra innings."


In his first year on the job, newly appointed Red Sox general manger Theo Epstein inked a left-handed slugger to a 1-year deal worth $1.5 million.

On July 26, 2003, that left-handed slugger introduced himself to Red Sox Nation by drilling a walk-off double in the bottom of the ninth that crashed off the Green Monster to defeat the New York Yankees by a 5-4 score. Red Sox fans far and wide got a small sample of what was in store for them in the years to come while watching a man by the name of David Ortiz perform in the city of Boston.

As the 2003 season went on, the Red Sox were in the middle of a fierce battle for the American League Wild Card. On September 23 with the Baltimore Orioles in town, the Red Sox trailed 5-2 entering the bottom of the ninth. With a little bit of Fenway magic, Todd Walker blasted a three-run shot to tie the game at five. In the bottom of the tenth, Ortiz strolled to the plate and began his legacy here in Boston by cranking a solo home run into the Monster seats for his first walk-off home run in a Red Sox uniform.

Now, five years, six seasons, 11 walk-off home runs, two World Series rings and an ALCS MVP later, Ortiz was up to his old tricks again.

Veteran (and All Star) pitcher, Tim Wakefield, returned to action for the first time since July 8, following a long stint on the disabled list. Early on, he looked sharp, striking out the game's first batter in Jayson Nix. Later in the inning, Paul Konerko knocked a rare triple into the triangle that nearly hopped up over the high fence in center. The triple knocked in Gordon Beckham, who singled earlier in the inning.

In the bottom of the second, David Ortiz stepped to the plate and fouled off three pitches before popping a 94 MPH 4-seamer over the wall in left to tie the game at one.

Both Wakefield and Chicago starter, Gavin Floyd, duked it out, as the scoreless innings began to pile up for both starters. Leading off the bottom of the sixth with a 1-1 tie, Alex Gonzalez silenced the critics who said all he came to Boston with was his glove. With a full count, Gonzalez got a cutter that caught too much of the plate and aired one out into the front row of Monster seats. The solo shot broke a 1-1 tie and gave Wakefield a chance to pick up a win in his return, assuming the bullpen could hold the lead.

Well, you know what they say, best bullpen in baseball or not, you can't assume anything these days. After Wakefield walked off the mound for the final time in this contest, he had thrown 94 pitches over seven innings of work, giving up just that one earned run on six hits, while walking one and striking out three.

"I don't know how he did it," manager Terry Francona said, "but he was fantastic. That was more than you could possibly expect. He pounded the strike zone. That was unbelievable."

Ramon Ramirez was the first to come out of the Sox's bullpen in relief of Wakefield. In the top of the eighth, facing pinch-hitter Scott Podsednik, Ramirez fired a 94 MPH fastball that was tattooed over the Red Sox's bullpen and into a sea of fans.

Knotted up at two in the bottom of the ninth, none other than David Ortiz walked to the batter's box with a purpose. After taking the first pitch slider for a ball, Ortiz hacked at the second pitch and bombed the 88 MPH slider from Tony Pena high into the Boston sky. Ortiz slowly walked down the first baseline, as the ball sailed further and further from home plate.

Finally, Ortiz put his arms in the air in celebration, as the ball landed about twenty rows deep past Pesky's pole and into a madhouse of elated Red Sox fans. As Ortiz began his jog around the bases, Pena made his walk of shame from the mound that so many relief pitches have made before him at the hands of Big Papi.

As he came barrelling towards home plate, Ortiz did his traditional helmet toss and dove into a pile of his teammates. With Fenway erupting all around, the Red Sox had once again been carried to victory on the back of David Ortiz. It wasn't the first time, although it has been a while, I can assure you it won't be the last time, either.

"A guy like me, I don't like to play extra innings," Ortiz told reporters after the game.

Although Tim Wakefield pitched brilliantly, Podsednik's solo shot erased his chances of earning a victory. Daniel Bard picks up the win after striking out three batters over an inning-and-a-third.

Final Score: White Sox 2, Red Sox 3

Things you'll need to know to impress your friends:

With his ninth walk-off home run as a member of the Red Sox, David Ortiz now stands alone, passing Jimmie Foxx for most walk-off home runs in the history of the franchise.

Ortiz's ten career walk-off home runs tie the left-handed slugger with six other home run hitters for the third most in the history of the game. However, one more walk-off will move him up to second place, and another would tie him for the most all-time with these household names: Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Frank Robinson, Stan "the man" Musial and Jimmie Foxx.

In his Red Sox career, Ortiz now has 17 walk-off hits during the regular and postseason combined. Eleven of those 17 game-ending hits are home runs.

Here's something that'll really impress your friends. Tonight, when catching Tim Wakefield for the first time, Victor Martinez was using his first baseman's mitt.

I had a lot of fun," Martinez said. "The drills that I did with [bullpen coach Gary Tuck] really helped me out a lot. [Wakefield] had a lot of movement today. Like Gary told me, I just had to relax and let the ball come to me. It doesn't have to be pretty. You just have to catch it."

Tim Wakefield commended his battery mate for his outstanding effort behind the plate. "For the first time catching me in a game, with hitters up there, he did a phenomenal job," Wakefield said. "I'm very happy for him."

In earning the victory on Wednesday night, Daniel Bard earned his first win as a big league pitcher. Congrats!

Thursday's pitching match-up:

The Sox look to break out the brooms in this four-game series when they send right-hander Junichi Tazawa to the mound to square off against John Danks. In Tazawa's last outing, the righty blanked the Yankees over six innings of work. Danks has a respectable record of 11-8 with a 3.85 ERA this season, but has not fared well against Boston. In three starts against the Sox, Danks is 0-3 with a 6.06 ERA.

Eye on the scoreboard:

Rangers 2, Yankees 9
Rays 2, Blue Jays 3

Result: After getting blown out in the Bronx, the Texas Rangers drop to 2.5 games behind Boston in the Wild Card. However, I'm sure the Rays would have rather lost in a seven-run blowout, rather than lose the way that they did. Tampa Bay lost on a walk-off wild pitch, which sunk them four games behind the Red Sox in the Wild Card standings. With their win on Wednesday night, Boston remains six games behind the Yankees in the American League East.

-Jared Carrabis

Celebrate Big Papi officially becoming the most clutch HR hitter in Sox history with this tee from Sully's!







Published on August 27, 2009

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