	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

AL DIVISION SERIES: RED SOX VS INDIANS

October 10, 2016

David Ortiz

Boston, Massachusetts - Postgame three

Cleveland - 4

Boston - 3

Q. Your last plate appearance. You're trying to get on base, but you seemed a little pissed, that you got the bat taken out of your hand?
DAVID ORTIZ: No, no, no, not mad, that's the game. And definitely I had to congratulate Tito and the Cleveland Indians, they play unbelievable baseball. And that's what happened. That's what the game is all about. Short series, whoever played the best is going to dominate.

And I end up walking my last at-bat, but I was basically trying to call Hanley attention to go out there and take care of business, and he did.

Q. What were you thinking when you went back out to the mound to say good-bye to the fans?
DAVID ORTIZ: I was talking about the emotions that I went through once I walked to the mound for the last time. And I was saying that I went through like three different times where emotions popped. But they're different. First one this year was when we heard the bad news about my friend Jose Fernandez, something that impact the whole world, and you never expect anything like that to happen. And when it happens you start thinking, and your mind go all over the place. And that's something that it was a shock. Nobody was expecting anything like that to happen to such a young, talented player, good kid. And we're going through the ceremony, when that happens, emotion pops. And the other day when we were having the ceremony here about my retirement emotions came back out again.

But the reality is that there's two times I know that I was going to continue playing baseball. I know there was more games to go. But tonight when I walk to the mound I realize that -- I realize that it was going to be -- it was over. It was pretty much probably the last time as a player walk in front of a crowd. And the emotion came back out again.

But like I say, I'm happy, not just for me, not just how my career went down, but for the organization, the step that we took, from going from last place to win the Division this year. Even if things didn't end up the way we were looking for but I believe that in baseball, especially in the baseball game that we play in today's day it's a big step because it's like going from bad to good, from day to night. And I told my teammates about it, I want them to feel happy and proud about themself. And do what I did back in the day. Reflect that in the following year and come back and fight.

I told them, Listen, we only played three games this playoff, but you guys saw the intensity. You guys saw the emotions. You guys saw the best of the best playing. You guys take a little bit of that. Make sure that carry over for the following year.

Q. What's it say about the people here and yourself that there could be -- I'm sure you felt love, there could be so much love pulling your way of those fans who waited for you, and even before the last out came down they were chanting your name. What does that say about the game and your career?
DAVID ORTIZ: The game, the game that I love, the game that made me be who I am. The game that I look forward to get better every day is something that I'm definitely going to carry the rest of my life. And those moments, they always going to be special. They always going to stay with you.

And what made me happy and proud about walking home the way I am right now is that as long as I play in front of these fans I never take anything for granted. I give everything I have. Do something special while I play. And the fans respect that. The fans love that. The fans, they live through it. And that's all that matters to me.

And everywhere I go, everywhere I bump into our fans, it doesn't matter if you bump into two of them or you bump into a thousand of them, they show the same love. And that's why I get better, that's why I get the opportunity to have the career I had.

Q. How did you get word that the crowd was waiting for you? How did you become aware of that? When you got teary on the mound what were you thinking about?
DAVID ORTIZ: You know, we went into the clubhouse after the last out and John has his moment with all of us. I also say something to my teammates. And the PR group came to me and told me that -- right after the meeting they came and told me that the fans were expecting me, they were calling my name out there.

So I definitely always want to show love to the fans. I start thinking I have my moment once I walk on to the mound, start looking around. And that moment that hits you, you know you're never going to be able to be performing in the baseball world, in front of all this -- no disrespect to anyone, but I think we have the best fans worldwide. It's something that -- it kind of hit me a little bit. I'm not going to lie to you.

And like I say, I've been trying to hold my emotions most I can, but that last second I couldn't hold it no more. And that's how we feel about what we do, because we love what we do. So I respect this game so much and I love this game so much that as long as I play I want to always be one of the best. Not because of me, not because of my person, because I don't really care about that; I really care about the fans. I really care about the emotion that they live through it. I really care about everything that comes with it, community-wise, what we do off the field. It's the whole package. It comes with a lot of things. So I really care about all of that.

Q. A week ago with all the ceremonies here, it was almost this expectation that the team was poised for this deep run to give you a chance at a fourth World Series. How shocking is it to you that it's over in three games? Does it seem like the series went by in the blink of an eye?
DAVID ORTIZ: To be honest with you, I wasn't expecting any of it. But you know how playoffs are. Whatever get the momentum going -- the playoffs are a short series, and it's all about momentum. And the Indians, they have this incredible momentum going on since day one. And it's not what you expect but it's what the game is all about, momentum. And we never catch up with that momentum. And in short series that is very critical.

But we wasn't -- I'm not going to lie to you, we were expecting to do what -- what they did to us, we expected to do to them, because we feel like we have a better ballclub. But when it comes down to playoff and short series, it's not about who is the best, it's who played the best. And obviously they did.

Q. Even though you're sad that you guys lost, in some ways are you happy that the final game was here, so you were able to have that moment with the fans?
DAVID ORTIZ: Well, obviously I'm not happy that that moment shows up. I was cheering so bad. Once I got out of the game I was screaming at my team to put me back in it. Make me wear this uniform one more day. Because I wasn't ready to be over with the playoff.

I was telling me teammates that there's one goal when you are getting ready to go to Spring Training. It's not Spring Training. It's not the season. It's a playoff. Only eight teams go to the playoff, so that mean you play at your best all year-round. So that's the only reason why you're there.

On the other hand, like I told you guys before, we took a big step going from last place to winning the Division. That's a good sign. That's a good sign. And I know this organization, Dave Dombrowski and the rest of the squad is going to get the pieces to be able to compete next year and do better at this stage. And we got that on David, he know how to figure things out at that level.

I want to come around and have fun next year, looking at it from the other side.

Q. You've been preparing for your retirement the past two years and does this kind of taint that preparation going into the two years and has it entered into your psyche that tomorrow there won't be another game?
DAVID ORTIZ: What is the psyche, by the way? Keep it simple. Your mind (laughter). Playing around with this Dominican kid.

I was telling my man that -- because he asked me about if what I did during the regular season, with the way things end up is going to be erased. And I basically told him that there's no end without a begin. There's no final without doing good at the beginning. So I don't really care if that happened, but I feel like I do what I was supposed to do; help this ballclub to go to the playoff. And once you get to the playoff, which is what everybody looking for, whatever happen, happens.

And mentally I think I'm prepared on my psyche, in my mind, to be over with the game. I talk to a lot of guys that already have retired and have been done with their career. And they say that the first year is the one that when you see everybody getting prepared to go to Spring Training and you start watching games and stuff like that, it's when it hits you. But at some point you start getting used to, when you see the team got to travel.

So that's something that I'm not going to miss about playing baseball.

Q. Was there anything different about getting to the park today? Did the thought cross your mind about just taking a moment to appreciate some different things that you might not ordinarily take the time to pay attention to, given the possibility that this would be your last game? And now that it is done, is there any part of it that's a relief?
DAVID ORTIZ: For the first time I drove around Fenway, I did a lap in Fenway with my car. Because, you know what, a couple of days ago somebody asked me if I ever thought about this could be my last game. And I wasn't thinking about it but it kind of stay in my head because it's reality. It's something that could happen and it happens.

So I kind of drove around, did a lap at Fenway today and I kind of like viewed things from a different perspective and I kind of realized that, for that person asked me the other day.

But like I said, man, like I can't ask God for no more than what he gave me. I'm a guy that come out of the Dominican one day when I was -- I just turned 17 years old, and all I want to do was have fun at what I do. Because you kind of walk into this career, there's a lot of expectation, but you don't know any of them when you are that age.

And then through my career I saw a lot of things happen. I saw a lot of guys being lost in their life, not just their career, but their life in general. Because this is everything that they have and they never made it. And seeing those things I always have been a guy that my mind and my eyes, I always used them at their best. And everything that I saw that cut them short, to not make it in their career, I kind of played it out like it was myself. And the experience, the getting to know things, viewing things from the outside, keep my feet on the ground and trying to learn through the process and not taking anything for granted give me a 20-year career. So that one kid that was expecting just to have fun, here it is, 23 years later, having a career and walking home, there were not too many of us get to get it done.

So the memories and other things that I can share with you guys, you guys already know most of them. And I'm happy and proud of going home the way I am right now.

Q. Based on the one time you came to a charity event back when you were in Minnesota, you had a cast on, and just the kind of things that you did community-wise, did you ever think that your legacy was going to be what it is?
DAVID ORTIZ: No clue about it. When you are that young, you don't think about any of that, you just live in the moment. But the one thing that I can tell you is that my parents, they did their best with myself. They raised me the right way. And everything I am and everything I have, besides God, I thank them every day for being hard on me the right way; being responsible, show me responsibility, show me manners, show me the important things about life. And what I learned, that's what I put in play.

Because like I always say, I wasn't a five-tool player, I wasn't. I saw a lot of guys playing the game by me that I used to look at them and I was like, Man, I've got no chance. I play with so many great players that I used to tell myself there's no way I can be that good.

But most of them didn't have what I had, my mindset, my mentality, the way I grab knowledge and things. And those ten seconds to slow down and look at things from a different view. And I think that's one of the best things that -- that's one of the best talent that God can give to any human. And I feel like I've been blessed with the one tool that got me a 20-year career. And the rest is history.

Always proud of representing my country the way I did, but also proud of representing this country, the United States of America, the way I also did, because this country had done so much for me and my family that I can't thank it enough.

Q. Can you just speak to your relationship with John Farrell over the last couple of years as your manager and just maybe the future of the club and how he's handled that.
DAVID ORTIZ: I had a great relationship with John, as being not just a manager, he's been a mentor to a lot of us. And I have to give him a lot of credit, because putting 25 different minds is something that is not an easy thing to do. 25 different mentality, keep that clubhouse under control is something that is hard to do. It's harder than what people think it is. And especially the way what John went through last year that we all know and coming back and having the year that we have, that is something that to me is very special.

He got that good relationship with pretty much all the guys. You never heard anything crazy that can break us apart. Everything this year went basically perfect. And I got to give John a lot of credit. John, he always step up when we need him. He always have that meeting when we all were depressed. And that is something that to me as a player it turned out to be special. And I'm very sure that all those kids in the locker room really appreciate that.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297