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Red Sox slugger ‘Big Papi’ David Ortiz elected to Baseball Hall of Fame

By Boston 25 News Staff

David Ortiz connects for a game-winning, two-run homer to win Game 4 of the ALCS in 2004. The victory sparked Boston's improbable comeback from a 3-0 series deficit, as the Red Sox then swept the next three games from the New York Yankees. (Jim Rogash/WireImage)

By Boston 25 News Staff

BOSTON — One and done. Former Red Sox slugger David Ortiz has been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on his first time on the ballot.

Surrounded by family and friends at his home in Santo Domingo, Ortiz got the call Tuesday from Cooperstown. He was the only player elected.

Ortiz joins Pedro Martínez, Juan Marichal, and Vladimir Guerrero as the only Dominican players in the Hall of Fame.

Ortiz’s Hall of Fame resume includes hitting 541 home runs, being a 10-time All-Star, and leading the Red Sox to three World Series championships.

Ortiz delivered some of the most iconic postseason performances in league history and remains one of the most prominent names in the sport even five years after his retirement.

Ortiz joins Edgar Martinez as the only hall of famers to spend most of their careers as designated hitters.

Although Big Papi didn’t contribute much as a positional player, his legacy in Boston goes well beyond what he did on the field, it’s what he did for the city.

His “This is our city” speech after the marathon bombings, and countless community endeavors in the Boston area only add to his hall of fame legacy.

Photos: David Ortiz through the years Boston strong: David Ortiz speaks to the crowd at Fenway Park during a pregame ceremony in the aftermath of the bombings at the Boston Marathon in 2013. (Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

In a statement, Ortiz said in part “For a young boy from Santo Domingo, I always dreamed of playing professional baseball. Thanks to the encouragement of my father, Leo, and my mother, Angela Rosa, I knew from my earliest days at Estudia Espaillat High School in the Dominican Republic that I had the opportunity to pursue my dream of playing in the big leagues. And while my path to success was not straightforward, it was my friend, the Hall of Famer, Pedro Martinez, who convinced the Red Sox to give me a chance to achieve success. And while my path to Boston took 10 years, those 14 years in a Red Sox uniform were the best of my life. We broke the curse and then got two more championships before I retired in 2016—what a sweet and beautiful journey it has been.”

Former Red Sox players Roger Clemens and Curt Schilling, and former MLB slugger Barry Bonds and were not voted in.

Clemens, Schilling and Bonds were rejected in their last year of eligibility on the baseball writer’s ballot.

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