Though the Red Sox suffered a tough loss to Cleveland that ended their run in the American League playoffs, there was one player who received a standing ovation.
Fans chanted “We’re not leaving” for about 13 minutes as they waited to see David Ortiz one more time before he left Fenway.
Ortiz then came out of the clubhouse to salute fans with tears in his eyes.
“It’s something that it kind of hit me a little bit, I’m not going to lie to you,” Ortiz said after the game. “Like I said, I’ve been trying to hold my emotions as best I can but at that last second, I couldn’t hold it any more.”
Congratulatory messages poured in overnight from some old friends and rivals alike.
Pedro Martinez tweeted a message in both English and Spanish to his compadre.
Well done compadre, well done. Bien hecho compadre, bien hecho. 💪🏻🇺🇸🇩🇴⚾️ https://t.co/ayXvFB7TeQ
— Pedro Martinez (@45PedroMartinez) October 11, 2016
And fellow retiree Alex Rodriguez took to Twitter to congratulate “the best clutch hitter” he ever played against.
The best clutch hitter I ever played against. Congrats on an amazing career. #ThanksPapi https://t.co/WNrmYbmOjO
— Alex Rodriguez (@AROD) October 11, 2016
The Massachusetts Police sent a tweet thanking Ortiz, writing that their forces remember his resilience during the Boston Marathon Bombings.
Thank you @davidortiz for all you did on and off the field. We'll always remember how tall you stood after the bombing. Heart of a champion. pic.twitter.com/rtQLh9Mpkf
— Mass State Police (@MassStatePolice) October 11, 2016
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh also tweeted to thank Ortiz for his Boston pride:
While the @RedSox's season might be over, we always remember what @davidortiz has done for our team and our city — #ThanksPapi
— Mayor Marty Walsh (@marty_walsh) October 11, 2016
“I definitely always want to show love to the fans and I started thinking, I had my moment once I walked to the mound. I started looking around and that moment that hits you knowing that you’re not going to be able to performing in the best baseball park in the world,” Ortiz said.
Big Papi was not happy about the sweep by Cleveland, but said he was proud of what his team accomplished in his final season.