Ortiz’s biggest problem is amnesia

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Mike Parente, GoLocalProv Sports Editor

Athletes who cry when they don’t get their way or complain about any shred of negative press have a convenient copout to appease their fan base, and it generally involves blaming the media for all of their problems.

Case in point: Red Sox slugger David Ortiz lashed out at his critics Thursday during an appearance on WEEI and (surprise, surprise) directed most of his venom at “guys sitting down out there that never played the game before” – in other words, the media.

Ortiz basically has sand in his crotch because we, the media, had the nerve to question whether or not he had anything left in the tank after he opened the season with a robust slugging percent of .286 in April. Nevermind the fact Ortiz’s own manager, Terry Francona – who, by the way, actually has played the game – questioned the same thing when he yanked “Big Papi” in favor of Mike Lowell in the eighth inning of a tied game in Toronto earlier this season. Ortiz decided his best plan of attack was to lob haymakers at the press, because a.) they’re an easy target and b.) fans will generally buy into such nonsense because they think all reporters root for their favorite players to fail.

Ortiz’s cheap shot at the media is not only horribly misguided, but it reeks of disloyalty as well. The truth is “Big Papi” should be kissing our flabby, over-cynical rear-ends for never pressing the issue last year when his name popped up on a list of players who tested positive for steroid use seized by the federal government.

While Roger Clemens had to face a freakin’ grand injury for his alleged drug use, Ortiz basically issued a written statement in which he promised to get to the bottom of this, find out what he tested positive for and share that information with the public (sure, and O.J. is still looking for the “real killers”) before waiting an entire week to actually address the media in person. Flanked by union lawyer/mouthpiece Michael Weiner, Ortiz continued to dodge reality, suggesting that while he might have been “careless” when buying supplements, he had no idea what triggered the positive test.

“I never thought that buying supplements and vitamins was going to hurt anybody’s feelings,” Ortiz said.

That was it. Ortiz said his piece and – poof! – the issue disappeared faster than Amelia Earhart. No one even had the balls to remind us that the David Ortiz busted last July was the same David Ortiz who five months earlier in spring training suggested all players who get caught should be banned for an entire season. Instead, we continued to hose down “Papi’s” marbles while other players trapped under the same scope of alleged steroid use faced far more scrutiny.

To this day, Ortiz still hasn’t disclosed what “supplement” caused him to land on that list of steroid users. Perhaps his daily search for the truth is so exhausting it’s affecting his performance at the plate. That would explain the whopping four RBI in April.

Ortiz’s selective memory is disheartening. While he doesn’t owe the media anything for sweeping the steroid issue under the rug, the media owes it to us to pursue hot-button topics regardless of the stature and overall likeability of the player involved. We’ve all been the victim of a major disservice and Ortiz is making matters worse by continuing to act like your typical unappreciative, spoiled athlete – one who not only blames everybody but himself, but also fails to realize just how good he has it here.

To quote George Steinbrenner, who blasted reliever Jeff Nelson in 2000 for bitching about not making the All-Star Team, Ortiz should “just give us what we need and zip the lip.” In other words, “Shut up and swing the bat,” and, more importantly, be thankful the media only addresses your batting average, not the skeletons in your closet.