Bases loaded, two outs, eighth inning, tie game. If it were the Big Papi of 2003-07, there’d be little doubt that “The Greatest Clutch Hitter in the History of the Boston Red Sox” would give the Sox a late lead. But as has been more and more clear over the past season-plus, this doesn’t look like the same Ortiz.
So Terry Francona, for the second time in as many weeks, made the decision to pinch hit Mike Lowell for Ortiz. It paid off, as Lowell drew a four-pitch walk that forced in the eventual game-winning run.
Though it was the right decision, that doesn’t make it any easier for Francona.
“I’m glad the decision has been made, but it’s been a really tough year so far for Francona,” said NESN baseball analyst Dennis Eckersley on Red Sox Extra Innings. “With veteran players like [Ortiz], to have to make a decision … that is a really tough decision, because Ortiz has been the guy. He’s been the guy for so many years.”
Tom Caron added that the difficulties have extended beyond just Ortiz, as veterans Tim Wakefield and Jason Varitek — two icons from the ’04 championship run — are being moved into lesser roles with the Sox.
In the case of Lowell, Eckersley said that if Francona didn’t use the righty in the situation on Tuesday night, then he’d never get to play.
“If you didn’t use Lowell [against the lefty Scott Downs], what is he going to do?” Eckersely asked. “If Big Papi was swinging the bat, obviously he’d be in there. But we’ve seen this last year, and I don’t think they can wait. I think the decision has been made, and I think they’re going to go back and forth [with Ortiz and Lowell].”
Speaking Wednesday afternoon on WEEI, Francona discussed the challenges he’s faced thus far in 2010.
“We are trying to do everything in our power to kind of scratch and claw and find a way to win a game,” he said on The Dale and Holley Show.
Watch the full conversation from Tuesday night below.
