Ortiz vs. Yaz: A fool's debate

David Ortiz hit 2 homeruns Monday night, giving him 453 for his career, one more than legendary Red Sox Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski. And then the arguing started.

I can imagine older fans favor Yaz, who could play the field well (7 Gold Gloves) and probably didn't take PEDs. Younger fans probably don't care about defense, and only know Yaz as a collection of stats and newsreel footage, whereas they can remember with vivid detail Ortiz's big hits, and the celebrations they sparked. Yaz has Gold Gloves, Ortiz has rings. Yaz had to deal with a Curse, Ortiz ended it.

Some think that Yaz is a better all around player, but they'd take Ortiz in a clutch situation. That seems to be a popular opinion.

Neither are right. Neither are wrong. Trying to argue about which is better is a fool's debate, because each's greatness is unique and different and not comparable.

Ortiz will be in the Hall of Fame because of his postseason heroics. The 450+ homeruns he hits will tag along, but they're not the reason he'll be inducted. Ortiz has the rings, he has the big hits, he spearheaded the 2004 comeback. Ortiz's homeruns don't have much to do with his future enshrinement. Yaz, on the other hand, is in Cooperstown BECAUSE of his 453 homeruns, along with his other offensive stats.

The fact is that until recently 450 homerun hitters were uncommon. These days, hulking, defensively challenged 450 homerun hitters with questionable blood chemistry are a dime a dozen. Paul Konerko has 439, Adam Dunn 454, Jose Canseco 462,  Carlos Delgado 473, Gary Sheffield 509, Manny Ramirez 555. In an era where Jim Thome has 612 homeruns, cracking 450 just isn't a big deal.

Yaz and Ortiz have similar HR totals, but the reasons they are great are very different. Yaz was great for 15 years. Ortiz has been great in October. Those are the reasons they'll be hanging out in Cooperstown together.

Funnily, Yaz also has great postseason numbers (17 games, 4 HR, 11 RBI, .369 average, 1.047 OPS). Ortiz also has had a number of great regular seasons. However, these are not the reasons that the two are considered great. So arguing about which was greater is a foolish exercise, since they are great for different reasons.

It's like comparing Ty Cobb to Babe Ruth. One was great because he hit for a high average and stole bases, the other was great because he hit homeruns and won World Series. Ruth had a .342 average, 10th all-time, but that's not why he's considered great.

Compare Rickey Henderson, a leadoff hitter, to Ken Griffey Jr., a middle of the lineup power hitter. Compare the defensive genius of Ozzie Smith to the batting titles of Tony Gwynn. Compare the greatness Tom Glavine, who never led his league in ERA, to the 7-year dominance of Pedro Martinez from 1997-2003.

Now people want to compare Ortiz's clutchness in the big moment with Yastrzemski's consistent quality over a long period of time?

Good luck.

David Ortiz vs. Official Scorers

Sometimes the media makes mountains out of molehills. They take a small story, ramp it up, and turn it into a big deal. It happens in sports, politics, celebrity news, the media does it everywhere. In sports, if the story lasts 48+ hours the media deems it a "distraction." They declare that the story, which the media created/enhanced in the first place, is "taking away" from something more important. This keeps the story alive and makes it an even bigger story. Normally, this vicious cycle irritates me.

David Ortiz is not a victim of this cycle. He's the instigator. He took the molehill and started to build it into a mountain.. Ortiz couldn't leave his disagreement with Bob Ellis (who charged Joe Mauer with an error instead of rewarding David Ortiz with a hit) on the field, where it belongs. Because in Ortiz's mind, it's just the latest example of him being a victim.

Post-game, Ortiz was asked about the disagreement. He could have kept things simple and said something like "I disagreed with the decision," and left it there. He could have diverted attention away from the incident by saying something like "I thought it was a hit, but we won the game, that's what's important."

But moving on from a perceived slight is not what David Ortiz does. Here's what he said:

"We tie the game. We win the game. It doesn't get any better. But I want my hit back anyway... It’s always so hard here, man. I tell you. People are supposed to have your back at home. It never happens. It's always like that. I've been here more than a decade and the scorekeepers here are always horrible. This is home, man... I always look like I am the bad guy but they always end up changing it. Don't just be checking on Papi. Check on the scorekeeper. See what he's doing wrong. It's something that, it’s getting out of control. What is he watching? He’s not watching the same ballgame that everybody is watching, I guess. I got to make it clear. It's not my first rodeo, man. You know how hard it is to get a hit, man?"

The assembled media then laughed at his "rodeo" joke. None of the media asked the question that should have been asked: "Why is this such a big deal? Why care so much about it?"

Ortiz has a history of publicly disagreeing with official scorers. Or as he might see it, official scorers have a history of robbing him of hits and he has a history of standing up for himself and getting justice, saving his batting average from those who scheme to lower it with the stroke of a pen.

Ortiz also has a history of being overly sensitive whenever criticized or questioned. Or as he might see it, many people are out to get him and he needs to fight these conspiring forced in order to survive in Major League Baseball.

I don't care so much about Ortiz disagreeing with the official scorer, it's how he does it. A few years ago when he poked his head into the manager's press conference as the team was collapsing to complain about losing an RBI, it was like a crewman on the Hindenburg complaining about his paycheck to the captain as the airship was crashing and burning.

On Thursday Ortiz voiced his disagreement during the game. Later when the media came asking questions, Ortiz wanted to use them as a voice of his victimhood. "It's getting out of control." "It's always so hard here." "People are supposed to have your back at home. It never happens." "The scorekeepers here are always horrible."

"I always look like I am the bad guy but they always end up changing it." Translation: I cry, then I get my way.

I'm not going to exaggerate and say this is a big deal, or a distraction, or a bad example for younger players. It's an annoyance. And what's so annoying about it is that it could be avoided if David Ortiz just kept himself from trying to use the media to portray himself as a victim.

An official scorer made a decision, maybe the wrong decision, maybe he's human and makes mistakes. It's not part of a larger effort to lower your batting average.

Ortiz's whining changes the conversation. Instead of discussing whether it's a hit or an error, the discussion becomes about Ortiz and his reaction. Ortiz is not the victim, he's the perpetrator, he's the creator of this story.

2013 BBS Awards: Ted Williams Award for Red Sox Player of the Year

This award goes to the best player from the 2013 Boston Red Sox season. And what a season to look back on and remember.

The winner of this award is someone who in 2013 rallied both the team and the City.

The winner of the Ted Williams award is David Ortiz.

Honorable mentions to Jon Lester, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Koji Uehara.

Ortiz led the team in batting average (.309), homeruns (30), RBI (103), OBP (.393), SLG (.594), and OPS (.959). He was third on the team in runs (84), third in hits (160), and third in doubles (38). And that was just the regular season.

In the playoffs, he led the team with a .353 average, hit 5 homeruns, knocked in 13 RBI, got on base 50% of the time, slugged .706. All those numbers led the Red Sox. He scored the second most runs (12), and had the second most hits (18).

In an amazing year for an amazing team, he was the most amazing player.