With his arms up high, David Ortiz clapped a “thank you” one last time for the fans who supported him for so many years.<\/p>\n
40 year-old beloved slugger strolled out to the mound\u00a0tipped his cap to the crowd of almost 40,000 – the largest at Fenway Park since World War II. The crowd cheered and changed “Thank you, Pa-pi” for more than 10 minutes after the last out.<\/p>\n
Wiping tears from his eyes, Big Papi’s story in Boston came to an end.<\/p>\n
“I went through like three different times where emotions popped. But they were different,” Ortiz said.<\/p>\n
Ortiz’s team was trailing behind the Cleveland INdians by two runs in Game 3 of the AL Division Series. Ortiz trotted to first base after an eighth-inning walk Monday night. It was his final plate appearance.<\/p>\n
Unforatunely, it wasn’t meant to be. The Red Sox were swept out of the playoffs with a 4-3 loss.<\/p>\n
“I was cheering so bad. Once I got out of the game, I was screaming at my team to put me back in it. Make me wear this uniform one more day. Because I wasn’t ready to be over with the playoffs” Ortiz said.<\/p>\n
After a career that included a 2013 World Series MVP award and 10 All-Star appearances,\u00a0he finished his final game 0 for 1 with two walks and an RBI. But he was just 1 for 9 in the series.<\/p>\n
Memorabilia and recognition for Ortiz was found\u00a0all over the ballpark to honor the 14 seasons that Ortiz spent in Boston. The first piece being a “Thank You! 34” banner than hung over the players’ parking lot through the season. Then there were the ovations.<\/p>\n
The first ovation came before the game when Oritiz took the field to stretch. It wasn’t long before Indians players came over to give him a hug, and stayed to stretch alongside them.<\/p>\n
Terry Francona, the Indian’s manager, said, “I thought it was an honor to be on the field for his last game. He’s truly one of the best and you could tell the way people were hanging around yelling his name. He deserves every bit of that.”<\/p>\n
The slugger said he has no regrets about how his career ended.<\/p>\n
“The game, the game I love, the game that made me who I am,” Ortiz said. “The game that I look forward to (getting) better every day is something that I’m definitely going to carry for the rest of my life. And those moments, they’re always going to be special. They’re always going to stay with you.”<\/p>\n