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Special playoff edition of Baseball Today: Saturday, October 13 »
October 13, 2007
BY JIM DONALDSON
Journal Sports Writer
BOSTON -- You don't need Bill James to explain to you that, as on-base percentages go, 100 percent is as good as it gets.
Or that if, say, your number-three and number-four hitters come to the plate 10 times, and reach base every time, you're probably going to win -- the way the Red Sox did Friday night in a 10-3 pounding of the Indians, as Cleveland pitchers were unable to retire either David Ortiz or Manny Ramirez even once.
Big Papi, batting ahead of Manny in the third slot in the order, was 2-for-2 (first-inning single, eighth-inning double), with two runs scored. He walked twice, and also was hit by a pitch.
Manny likewise was 2-for-2 (run-scoring single in the first, another single in the fifth) with three walks -- two of them with the bases loaded, and both, impressively, after he'd fallen behind in the count, 0-2. Which is how he wound up with three RBI.
"I've never seen anything like it," said Mike Lowell, who took advantage of batting just behind Ortiz and Ramirez by driving in three runs, two of them with a double to right in the fourth inning, when Boston broke the game open by scoring four times to take a 5-1 lead against Indians ace C.C. Sabathia.
"They're unbelievable," Lowell said of Boston's dynamic duo. "They're aggressive, they're patient, they're picking their spots. They have such solid at-bats. It's great for me, because they're always on base."
Lowell's not exaggerating when he says Ortiz and Ramirez are "always on base." Not much, anyway.
In the four postseason games so far, Big Papi has been on base a mind-boggling 16 times in 18 trips to the plate, for a dazzling OBP of .889. Manny also has come to the plate 18 times, and has reached base 13. The combined OBP of Ramirez and Ortiz is .806.
"Manny was 0-and-2 twice," said Lowell, "and was able to spit on those tough pitches and draw a walk. I asked him: 'Are you just fouling balls off to mess around, or what?'
"They're just both putting together tremendous at-bats. It's normal for other pitchers not to want them to beat you. But for them to get on base like they did (Friday night) is a little bit ridiculous."
That's one way of putting it.
Another would be "spectacular."
"Wow," said Sox manager Terry Francona. "They were on base -- what -- 10 times? That's kind of extreme."
Ortiz, in particular, has been extremely hot lately.
He has made just six outs in the last eight games, including the final four games of the regular season, as well as Boston's four playoff games.
Speaking of the postseason, Ortiz is batting .433 (39-for-90) since Game Five of the 2003 ALCS against the Yankees. He has hit safely in 22 of 24 playoff games since then, with 27 RBI, 24 runs scored, and 21 walks.
He's hitting a phenomenal .777 this postseason, with seven hits in nine at-bats,including two homers He also has drawn eight walks, and been hit once by a pitch.
Manny's batting .500 (5-for-10) with two homers, seven RBI, and eight walks. He has reached base in 11 of his last 12 plate appearances.
"Yeah," Ortiz said, "I guess we're hitting the ball good. We've got to keep it that way, especially in the playoffs, when you don't get that many opportunities to produce.
"We know that they're going to pitch carefully to Manny and me. So we keep that in mind, and we stick with whatever they give us. We still have another seven players that have to take advantage of it. When you walk somebody, you've got to pay for that later."
Francona admitted to some concern that, after having been so hot against the Angels, Ramirez and Ortiz might cool off following four days off.
"We've seen a lot from David," Francona said. "What was nice is that he really seemed like he was swinging the bat in the first series agains Anaheim, and then you have the little break, and you hope that it stays where it is."
"We're professional hitters," Ortiz said. "We know what we're doing. Sometimes, it's a little hard to stay sharp, but we've been playing this game for a long time. Our manager and coaches did a good job, working with us, seeing live pitching, and trying to keep everybody on the same page
"Me and Manny, we've been watching a lot of video, and we've been keeping the same workout that we do during the season. We're just trying to keep things simple."
It's also simple for the Indians: if they don't start getting Papi and Manny out, they'll be out of the playoffs in four games.
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