"That ain't me, dog," Ortiz told reporters Saturday afternoon at Fenway Park. "I haven't fought since I was in kindergarten. That's not what the fans come to see. That's not part of my personality. I don't like … a situation like that."
Ortiz got into it twice with Gregg in the eighth inning of Boston's 10-3 win. After Gregg came inside three times on the Red Sox designated hitter, Ortiz strolled toward the mound barking at the righty. Gregg barked back, benches and bullpens emptied, but nothing came of it other than warnings to both sides.
After Ortiz flew to center on the next pitch, Gregg shouted at him to start running to first base. Ortiz took exception and the fight was on.
Less than 24 hours later, Ortiz said the beef was over and he felt bad about his actions, for which he will most certainly be suspended.
Still, it's clear he was not thrilled with Gregg's actions: First, the three inside pitches, and then the shouting that took the incident to a violent level. To Ortiz, it was a poor way to handle the frustration of being on the wrong end of a lopsided score for the second straight night.
"If you're getting your [behind] kicked, nothing you can do but play better," Ortiz said. "You can't be acting stupid out there just because you're getting beat up. There's a reason why you're getting beat up. You're not playing the game the way it's supposed to be. Play the game the way it's supposed to be, you're not going to get beat up. So don't be blaming us, [saying] 'Oh, you guys think you are better than us.'"
Gregg said as much after the game, adding this line: "They are going to whine and complain about it because they think they are better than anybody else, but we have just as much right to pitch inside."
To Ortiz, the way Gregg carried out his response was poor.
"At the beginning of the season, we don't blame nobody but us," he said of his team’s 2-10 start. "Start to play better. Nobody here is looking over their shoulder at no one. Play the game right, you earn respect."
Ortiz is expecting Major League Baseball to hand down discipline, but stressed that he "wasn't the one who started this."
As for whether there will be any lingering effects of the fisticuffs, Ortiz thinks it is a thing of the past.
"It's over, it's over," he said. "It's a situation that happened in the game. Whatever happens in the field stays there."
