David Ortiz joins the Name Redacted Podcast to talk World Series titles, Rafael Devers, the WBC and more

The Name Redacted Podcast welcomed a very special guest to help celebrate the start of the new season — BIG PAPI!!!!!!!

EDITOR’S NOTE: This podcast contains adult language. Viewer discretion is advised.

Jared starts by talking with Big Papi about one of Jared’s favorite subjects — the World Baseball Classic. One of Papi’s big takeaways from the WBC was that Japan is knocking on the door of being an elite country when it comes to baseball talent. “Look out for what is coming from Japan in the next five to 10 years.”

Ortiz also dropped this bombshell: “I think I can probably say that I might be better in this era than my era.” The reason? “More velocity, less location,” Ortiz said. He said more velocity and less location would be huge for him because he used to hunt guys who had difficulty locating their pitches. He was also a fastball hitter, so as he says in the pod, do the math.

When asked to compare winning a World Series in Boston to winning a WBC title for the Dominican Republic, Ortiz has something of a surprising answer. “To be honest with you, there’s no difference ... for me, there’s no difference between winning for your country than winning for New England.” He said New England was like his second home, while the Dominican will always be his first home. But they’re both home. He said New England gave him a career, while the Dominican Republic made him who he is.

Ortiz also noted that in the WBC you get the best out of everybody and everybody has a purpose. He also said he would compare the WBC to the World Series, that’s the feeling you get during the tournament. He said the WBC sent a huge message: Baseball is in good hands.

When asked what his favorite World Series title was, Big Papi said every World Series win has a different meaning. He said if he was a Red Sox fan he would just be glad that during this era four World Series titles have been won because everyone has someone in their life who never saw a World Series victory. He jokingly said that when he first got to Boston and found out the Sox hadn’t won a World Series in 86 years he got worried! But seriously, he said he saw the passion right away and said the more passion the fans show their team and the more you support your team the better the chance they have of winning.

Jared asked Papi what he thought of the Sox locking up Rafael Devers to a long-term deal in the offseason. Papi said that when he watches Rafael Devers play he thinks of himself. Papi said that like himself, Devers doesn’t waste any at-bats and he goes to the plate with the mentality of hurting you and Papi says he loves that attitude. He said that when he sees Devers walk to the plate from the on deck circle, when he sees how Devers approaches pitchers and hitting, he reminds him of himself. Needless to say, Papi thinks the Red Sox made a very good decision in paying Devers and keeping him in a Red Sox uniform for a very long time.

If you enjoy the show and want to give your support, don’t forget to pick up your Name Redacted Podcast T-shirt on the DK Shop!

Listen to the podcast or watch the video below for the full discussion!

SHOW BREAKDOWN

Adam F*****g Duvall (Feat. David Ortiz)

• The Red Sox won their first series of the year against the Orioles and Adam Duvall went f*****g BANANAS! He’s obviously our first unanimous Klark’s Ketchup MVP of the season and he couldn’t be more deserving. Today we’re breaking down Red Sox opening weekend game by game. We’re talking whether we’re concerned about Kluber and Sale’s rocky starts, the lineup catching fire, Ort’s gutsy performances, the new LED lights at Fenway and the light show, and more! Oh and we also have Big Papi on the podcast to talk 2023 Red Sox and the WBC. Enjoy!

Watch more from the Baseball Is Dead podcast below!

VIDEO:

Check out the DraftKings YouTube page for more and subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also follow the show on Twitter @nameredactedpod.

Put your knowledge to the test. Sign up for DraftKings and experience the game inside the game.