David Ortiz did something no Boston first baseman has ever done Sunday
The Boston Red Sox started David Ortiz at first base Sunday, and wound up making franchise history. Given his lack of experience in the field, there was considerable concern that his poor defense could sink the club.
That wasn’t the case. In fact, if you were evaluating Ortiz’s defense at home, you didn’t have much to go on. That’s because he was almost invisible out there.
A quick look at the box score confirms that this is a fact. 
The Red Sox induced just two ground ball outs during the contest. Ortiz was involved in one of them, but flipped the ball to pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez for the putout. The second came when the next batter, Jake Marisnick, was called out on a bunt attempt due to batter interference.
Amazingly, every other out against the Red Sox was either a flyball or line drive to a position other than first base. That is pretty amazing!
The fact that Ortiz was involved only intensifies the weirdness of the situation. It was Ortiz’s first start at the position in Fenway since 2005.
[Check out Big League Stew on Tumblr for even more baseball awesomeness.]
It’s not often a team can get by without starting a first baseman, but you can argue the Red Sox could have done that Sunday. Ortiz was involved in just one freaking play.
Coming into the contest, it was looking like Ortiz’s start would be the strangest thing to happen on the field. The Red Sox somehow found a way to top that, and Ortiz still remained the focus.
More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:
– – – – – – –
Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
