50 Reasons To Love Papi

The clock read 4 minutes before 9 PM. The drive was a monster shot into the crowd. And history was matched for David Ortiz as number 50 was official. He is tied with Jimmy Foxx for the club record, and the Fenway crowd saluted him, not to mention the tens of thousands watching on television and listening to radio. I stood up and cheered, but in the end it was the Minnesota Twins who emerged the victors, thanks in large part to Craig Hansen's disasterous 4 batter outing. He is not ready for prime time, not yet. He walked off to the sound of boos. Deservedly so. Schilling labored through 5 innings, throwing more than 100 pitches, but it was good to see him back. It might have been Minnesota's game, but it was Papi's night. And now he goes for 51, a club record. It couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
On a side note, Manny's good friend Julian Tavarez told the media that Manny is all done this year. And that's good. Surgery will not be needed.
So the Nation holds it breath in anticipation of number 51, and beyond. They play the Twins again at Fenway, and then go to Toronto. But the last 5 games? At home. Where we belong.