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| (AP Photo) |
In a wide-ranging interview with Bob Nightengale of
USATodaySports,
David Ortiz revealed the reason he chose uniform number 34 when he arrived in Boston. It was a tribute to his mentor in the Twins organization—Hall of Famer
Kirby Puckett. Said Ortiz,
"That was my man, I loved him, I remember the day (March 6, 2006) that man died, all of us, we cried like babies. I still think about him all of the time. He was just such a great human being, such a fun person to be around. That’s who I grew up in this game always wanting to be like." He doesn't necessarily resent the Twinkies releasing him, since he feels it helped him health-wise. Said Papi,
"The thing that helped me was getting away from that turf. I got to the big leagues when I was 21, and a year later, I had so much pain in my body because of that turf. It was the worst. I went to Fenway, and the pain was gone." Glad we could help.
