For the past few seasons, David Ortiz has done his best to fight off the decline that usually accompanies players in their late 30s. However, the 2015 version of Ortiz doesn’t resemble the one we have become accustomed to.
Through 51 games, Ortiz is hitting just .219 and a has a .375 slugging percentage, which would be a career-low. The veteran designated hitter was given a couple of days off towards the end of May to work on his swing after suffering through a 20-at-bat stretch in which the 39-year-old recorded just one hit.
Not surprisingly, questions about whether or not the Red Sox slugger still has anything left are being asked. When asked directly to Ortiz, he does not take too kindly to it.
“You don’t disrespect people like that, you know what I’m saying? I’ve come a long way, and everyone knows my status, and to come and wipe it in my face just because things are not going well right now, I don’t think the question was fair. That tells tells me how things are around here. People forget too fast, and I don’t think it’s right.”
“I’m not washed up,” he said via WEEI. “I guarantee you that. I can wake up and hit, bro. That’s my nature. I’m not washed up.”
Ortiz has managed to say productive much longer than many major league players and has certainly built up a considerable amount of goodwill among those who follow and cover the Red Sox. And, if you were going to be on his numbers improving by season’s end, you would probably be correct. However, right now they don’t look very David Ortiz like, meaning questions will probably continued to be asked until they start to look more like normal.
