Boston's designated hitter just wants to get in his swings.
Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz began a rehab stint with Pawtucket on Thursday night.
PAWTUCKET, R.I. – David Ortiz commenced his rehab assignment Thursday night with the Pawtucket Red Sox in fairly impressive fashion.
Ortiz, who batted third and served as Pawtucket’s DH against the Rochester Red Wings, was 2-for-3 with one run scored and one RBI.
But even more important was the fact Ortiz was able to run the bases pain free after being sidelined since last July 16 with an Achilles tendon injury.
“I feel fine,” he said. “That’s the important thing to be able to run around the bases and be able to move around and be able to do that with freedom.”
What Ortiz referred to was underscored in the fifth inning when he went from first to third on an RBI double by Mark Hamilton which proved to be a key hit in Pawtucket’s 5-4 victory.
“The couple of days I played in Florida went well,” he said. “Basically, there wasn’t any hesitation when I was running the bases.”
In Ortiz’s first at-bat, right-hander Kyle Gibson (Minnesota’s No 1 pick in the 2009 draft) got ahead 0-2 on fastballs and then missed the zone on his next two pitches. But Gibson induced Ortiz to wave at a third-strike, off-speed pitch.
Ortiz next stepped to the plate with two outs in the third, after Jose Iglesias hit a two-run homer, and lined a first-pitch single to center.
While Ortiz didn’t scald the ball in the fifth, he did hit a bouncer up the middle for an RBI single and eventually scored from third base on a Drew Sutton single.
“That’s another thing I’m concerned about,” Ortiz said referring to the fact he’s facing a higher level of pitching than he did in extended spring training. “That’s why we have long spring training - to make sure you get ready to play in a major league baseball game.
“That’s another area that I want to make sure I cover some ground.”
Initially Ortiz was scheduled to play the full game but he was removed from the field after the sixth inning due in part to the cold weather. Red Sox manager John Farrell said inclement weather could keep Ortiz out of Friday's Pawtucket game.
“It was getting cold out there and I was getting a little sore, but it was a good sore,” he said. “I ran a lot today and because I’m going to play a lot of game here I didn’t want to take any chances.”