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Farewell David Ortiz Reality Is Setting In For Fans Masslive

Bonisiwe Shabane
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farewell david ortiz reality is setting in for fans masslive

David Ortiz's career -- in baseball, with the Boston Red Sox, in clutch moments at Fenway Park -- is over. It's a harsh reality that's finally starting to set in for fans across New England (and beyond) Tuesday morning as the Red Sox were knocked out of the playoffs in three games by the... It was an unceremonious end to one of the greatest sports careers in Boston history, capped off by Ortiz emerging onto the field one last time to bid farewell to fans who stayed long... The farewells didn't end there, however, as fans, former teammates, former rivals and prominent figures across new England took to social media to thank Ortiz for what he's done for the Red Sox. Well done compadre, well done. Bien hecho compadre, bien hecho.

💪🏻🇺🇸🇩🇴⚾️ https://t.co/ayXvFB7TeQ David Ortiz retired after the 2016 season, but his devotion to the Red Sox continues in retirement. And, after watching the Red Sox finish in the American League East basement the last two years and three times in the last four years, he hopes that the franchise is ready to commit... You can listen to the entire episode here. “Where we’re at right now is not good shape,” said Ortiz while appearing on the latest episode of Fenway Rundown. “The numbers don’t lie.

Last year, you could tell that the fans were very disappointed with the way things were going. I don’t remember seeing Fenway Park that empty (for) home games. I saw that quite often last year. And let me tell you, the team carried a lot of injuries. The team was playing (near) .500 into the last, what, three weeks of the season, when everything really fell apart? And playing .500, still (they finished in) last place, because of the division that we are in.

“I would say this: they know that the competition, as of right now, in that division, is the best. You’ve got teams like Baltimore winning the division. You got teams like Tampa, doing what they do every year. You have the Blue Jays getting better, also. And then you have to deal with the Yankees who, you know every year they’re going to do something to dominate that division.” One day after the Cleveland Indians knocked the Boston Red Sox out of the playoffs, ending his career, David Ortiz took to Twitter Wednesday to send a message out to fans, both as a...

Getting swept in the first round of the playoffs isn't the way that many fans had hoped this season would go -- or how Ortiz's career would end. The result has been a rising sensation of frustration throughout the Red Sox fanbase over how the team performed at the end of the season. Manager John Farrell's also drawn a fair share of scrutiny. Ortiz, though, called for fans to take the loss in stride and look ahead to the bright future that lies before the Red Sox, particularly with the young core of Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts,... and others. While Ortiz will be walking away from the game after this season, the Red Sox will be continuing to build around that young core, and putting the pieces in place to further build upon...

In the meantime, they will need to find themselves a new designated hitter. Nick O'Malley is a Destinations reporter for MassLive. From weird foods to Boston Bucket List items, he's prowling the Bay State for the best there is to eat and see. He's also the author of the column, "I ate... more FORT MYERS, Fla.

-- As David Ortiz embarks on his final season today (and his farewell tour across the majors commences), he understand fans throughout the country have mixed feelings about him. The Red Sox play their season opener in Cleveland today at 4:10 p.m. "What can I tell you? You play the game. You try to do the right thing," Ortiz said during spring training. "Some people like you.

Some others, they don't agree with (you). You're not going to make everybody happy. But in my case, all I try to do is try to do my job. And I know a lot of people appreciate it." Ortiz is one of the most polarizing figures in today's game. So many fans love him for his contributions to the sport.

He's a major reason the Red Sox ended an 86-year championship drought in 2004. He's helped Boston win three World Series championships. He won the 2004 ALCS MVP and the 2013 World Series MVP. He's one of the most clutch hitters of all time. His former manager, Terry Francona, now the Cleveland Indians skipper, told reporters at Progressive Field on Sunday, "He's certainly the face of the Red Sox, or one of them, and probably the same goes... FORT MYERS, Fla.

-- Boston Red Sox DH David Ortiz is prepared for his farewell tour, like the ones Chipper Jones, Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera already have taken. Ortiz announced Nov. 18 -- his 40th birthday -- that 2016 will be his final season. He's expected to be honored by each team in each city the Red Sox visit. He enters the year with 503 homers, 584 doubles, 1,641 RBIs and a career .284 batting average with a .378 on-base percentage, .547 slugging percentage and .925 OPS. He's 27th all-time in career homers.

Above is a video of Ortiz discussing his upcoming tour and his decision to retire. He discusses his feelings for the fans across Major League Baseball. Christopher Smith is a Boston Red Sox beat writer for MassLive.com. Smith is a Syracuse University graduate. Follow him on Twitter @SmittyOnMLB and email him at csmith@masslive.com.

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