Today the Yankees announced they will hold a ceremony for the retiring David Ortiz when the Red Sox visit the Stadium in late September.
#Yankees announce they will honor David Ortiz with a pregame ceremony before the Sept. 29 game in the Bronx. #RedSox
— David Lennon (@DPLennon) September 15, 2016
My initial reaction was disgust, but not surprise.
Ortiz has been getting the same dumb gifts that Jeter and Mariano received on their farewell tours; he collected some barbecue sauce in Kansas City, a cowboy hat in Texas, and a 64-ounce jar of peanut butter in Minnesota — which I guess has some sort of inside joke associated with it.
Lots of arguments are being made as to why the Yankees should give Ortiz a ceremony. Here are a few:
The ‘David Ortiz has been one of the faces of baseball for a decade’ argument
This one made me laugh instantly. Yes, it’s true that David Ortiz has been a “face” of baseball for at least 10 years but it has always baffled me as to why. Alex Rodriguez was not considered a face of baseball. Barry Bonds was not considered a face of baseball. Same goes for Manny Ramirez, Mark McGwire, and Roger Clemens.
Ortiz belongs on the same list as those players. In fact, he was on the same list as those players! Of course the list I’m referring to is the 2003 anonymous PED test that ARod and countless other big name players appeared on, which ended up not really being anonymous. In the end, ARod took the fall for being on that list but Ortiz somehow managed to go unscathed.
Whether or not his name should be dragged through the mud for appearing on that list, and whether or not non-Yankees baseball fans care he was on the list, I will never understand why everybody acts like Ortiz is a stand-up guy who did everything the right way. This is the same guy that barged into a press conference because he was not awarded an RBI by the official scorer, and the same guy who said — with his own mouth — that he would never do a farewell tour like Derek Jeter did.
I fully understand the PED argument has holes in it. Andy Pettitte, an admitted HGH user, has his number retired by the Yankees. But Pettitte is one of our own that every Yankees fan loves for his contributions to the organization, so honoring him in Monument Park makes perfect sense. I’d say the same for the Red Sox and Ortiz, who’s number 34 will surely be retired soon.
The ‘Yankees are too classy to not give him a ceremony’ argument
I get that since every other team honored Ortiz it would look bad if the Yankees were the only team not to. I don’t care, though. The scars from Ortiz will never fade and an awkward buddy-buddy ceremony on September 29 is not going to do anything to change that.
I’m not saying the Yankees have to go out of their way to disgrace Ortiz, but an on-field ceremony with gifts is just too much. Put out a press release saying Ortiz had a wonderful career and slap “Congratulations David” on the scoreboard before his last game at Yankee Stadium, but please spare me the phony pomp and circumstance.
The ‘Boston gave Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera ceremonies’ argument
Guess what? The Red Sox should not have given Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera ceremonies. Why? Because Jeter, Mo, and the Yankees were arch rivals to the Red Sox for 20 years and countless times ripped the hearts out of Red Sox fans everywhere. The same goes for Ortiz who has MURDERED the Yankees since joining Boston, hitting .305/.396/.569, 52 HRs, 166 RBIs with countless big hits in the regular and postseason.
Does the Yankees organization just expect fans at the game on September 29 to be happy and cheer Ortiz? This is not like the Twins, Royals, or Rangers giving Ortiz a slap on the ass on his way out the door. This is Yankees-Red Sox. This is David Ortiz. I do not want to see him accepting a gift on the interlocking N-Y at Yankee Stadium and I have a feeling most Yankees fans agree with me.
