David Ortiz Elected To Baseball Hall Of Fame

BOSTON — David Ortiz has slugged his way to the Hall of Fame.

The Red Sox legend who came to Boston as a part-time player and left as one of the icons of his generation was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, garnering 77.9 percent of the vote in results announced Tuesday night.

Ortiz was the only player to clear the required 75-percent requirement on the ballot, which this year might be remembered more for who didn't make it than who did.

Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Curt Schilling and Sammy Sosa were all shut out of the Hall in their 10th and final year of eligibility. Alex Rodriguez fell short in his first year.

For Ortiz, it's the final stop in a career that saw him go from a teenage David Arias to larger-than-life Big Papi.

“I am truly honored and blessed by my selection to the Hall of Fame—the highest honor that any baseball player can reach in their lifetime," Ortiz said in a statement released by the Red Sox. "I am grateful to the baseball writers who considered my career in its totality, not just on the statistics, but also on my contributions to the Red Sox, the City of Boston, and all of Red Sox Nation."

One of the rare players renowned by fans and peers as a living legend during his playing days, Ortiz is the only thread connecting Boston's three world championships between 2004-13 — and an integral one to each, winning 2004 ALCS MVP and 2013 World Series MVP.

The hulking lefthander with the helicopter swing connected on what seemed like dozens of game-winning hits, earning his status as the greatest clutch hitter in Red Sox history.

While Ortiz is a gargantuan get for Cooperstown, baseball's all-time home run leader and one of the great pitchers of the modern era were shut out for the final time on the Baseball Writers Association of America ballots. Bonds and Clemens must now hope for consideration from the Today's Game era committee.

Sammy Sosa, who helped mash baseball back into popularity in the late '90s, also fell far short in his final year of eligibility. Alex Rodriguez, a supremely talented Yankee reviled by Boston fans, missed the cut in his first year on the ballot.

Schilling was also kept out of Cooperstown, though the former Red Sox ace torpedoed whatever chances he may have had when he asked to be taken off the ballot. He remained on, but his controversial political views and social media behavior weren't enough to overcome what some saw as a borderline case in the first place.

Bonds, Sosa and Rodriguez are the only retired players who have hit at least 600 home runs not in the Hall. They join Clemens in being held out due to links to performance-enhancing drugs.

Ortiz was also linked to steroids in a controversial leaked 2003 report, but he never tested positive moving forward. Ortiz also had to contend with voters who discredited him for being primarily a designated hitter for his career.

But boy, did he play that position well. Ortiz had 541 home runs and 1,768 RBIs in his career, both top-25 marks all-time. He was a 10-time All-Star and won seven Silver Slugger awards.

Oh, and he was clutch. Ortiz led the Red Sox to three World Series championships in nine years, an outburst that changed the trajectory of a franchise who was barren of titles for 86 years. His walkoff hits in Games 4 and 5 of the 2004 American League Championship Series against the Yankees set the stage for the greatest comeback the sport has ever seen.

But Ortiz's most memorable individual moments may have come during the 2013 season: When he told everyone whose [expletive] city it was after the Boston Marathon bombings, and when he keyed another postseason comeback with a grand slam that sent Torri Hunter and the Detroit Tigers out of the park.

Ortiz played his first six seasons with the Minnesota Twins, signing with Boston in an unheralded transaction in 2003. It was with the Red Sox where he became one of the most feared hitters — and most beloved player — of his generation.

Ortiz would set career highs in home runs each of his first four seasons — culminating in the team's single-season record of 54 in 2006. He led the league in doubles, RBIs, on-base and slugging percentage in his final season in 2016.

Ortiz has remained a faithful to Boston in retirement, even when he's hamming it up on the Fox broadcasts, and the city continues to elevate him. Ortiz has a bridge and street named after him.

There was a moment when it was unclear Ortiz would ever see this day. Ortiz was shot in the summer of 2019 in his home country of the Dominican Republic, suffering major injuries that necessitated multiple surgeries and a lengthy hospital stay in Boston. Authorities said Ortiz was shot by a hired gunman who mistook him for someone else.

He recovered in time to throw the first pitch at a September home game later that year. The fans celebrated Ortiz, who was as jovial as ever in thanking them for all the support.