5 most entertaining Boston sports athletes of all-time
By Jack Cote
3. The King of Clutch
The hero in 2004 against the Bronx Bombers, the grand slam wall scraper in game two against the Detroit Tigers, this king of clutch had 541 career home runs and ten all-star awards. Big Papi, for 14 years, was Boston sports father figure.
There have been supreme athletes that come and go through this Boston, but there wasn’t anyone like No. 34. He didn’t want to win to get rings or boost his resume. It seemed like he wanted to win for the city.
His moonshot in the bottom of the 12th inning to send the Yankee comeback series to a game 5 in the 2004 comeback series was the stuff of legends.
Amid a championship season, tragedy hit the Boston Marathon, and David Ortiz calmly announced to Fenway Park, “This is our f***ing city.”
Perhaps what made Papi so entertaining wasn’t the swing of the bat or 9th inning heroics, but it was the electric moments of anticipation. When he stepped out of the dugout with the bases loaded down three in the bottom of the 9th. That single step with his bat like a cane propelling him under the bright lights of Fenway. Chills every time.