David Ortiz dedicates World Series MVP award to city of Boston after batting .688
Midway through the World Series, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that David Ortiz of the Boston Red Sox would win the MVP. Even if St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny wasn't going to endorse it with the Series going on.
No matter, because Ortiz won the award Wednesday night after batting .688, hitting two home runs and getting on base 19 times in 25 plate appearances over six games. He finished with 11 of Boston's 41 hits in the Series. The crowd at Fenway Park shouted "MVP! MVP" at Ortiz whenever they got the chance during Game 6, which Boston won 6-1 for its third championship in 10 years and first at won at home since 1918.
Ortiz returned the love in a postgame interview on Fox TV, in which he referenced the Boston Marathon bombings of April 15:
"First of all, I want to say, 'This is for you, Boston. You guys deserve it. You've been through a lot this year. And this is for you and all of those families who struggled after the bombings earlier this year. This is for all of you."
At 37 years old, Ortiz is the third-oldest Series MVP ever, after Willie Stargell of the Pirates in 1979 (he was 39) and Randy Johnson in 2001 (when he was 38).
Ortiz also credited Red Sox manager John Farrell for setting the right tone in spring training and giving the players — new and returning — a chance to start the slate clean after a miserable season in 2012 and a collapse down the stretch in 2011.
Ortiz, himself, gave another rousing speech to the Red Sox on Sunday night in the middle of Game 4 of the Series that — coincidentally or not — seemed to rally them. They played their best baseball of the Series thereafter.
Throughout the Series, folks would ask themselves: Why are the Cardinals still pitching to Ortiz? Finally in Game 6, they all but stopped. Ortiz went 0 for 1 with two runs scored and four walks — three intentional.
Too late, however, for it to matter.
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David Brown is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him atrdbrown@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!
