David Ortiz, Professional Hitter

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

Ortiz clubbed two more home runs tonight, giving him 34 for the season to go along with 102 RBIs. He now has eight 30-HR/100-RBI seasons as a member of the Red Sox, breaking Ted Williams' record of seven such seasons. And this at age 38 (he turns 39 in November), and just a season after one of the best World Series performances in history: reaching base 19 times in 25 plate appearances, and hitting .688 (11 for 16) with a 1.948 OPS. Oh, and he was robbed of a grand slam on a great catch by Carlos Beltran, preventing the numbers from being even more ridiculous. Is he the best Boston Red Sox player ever?

[Roy H.]

Is he the best Boston Red Sox player ever?

No.  It's still Williams by a healthy margin.

Williams is #1 all-time in Major League OBP, he's #2 all-time in slugging percentage, and he's #2 all-time in OPS.  He's probably the second best offensive player of all-time, and that's with missing multiple seasons in his prime to fight for his country.

Ortiz is 179th in all-time OBP, and is 43rd in OPS.  Those are certainly impressive numbers, but they're not in Williams' league.  Plus, Ortiz is playing in the steroid era, and is linked to PEDs.

Ortiz will always be remembered as an all-time great member of the Sox, but he's not the best.

[Beat LA]

Ortiz clubbed two more home runs tonight, giving him 34 for the season to go along with 102 RBIs. He now has eight 30-HR/100-RBI seasons as a member of the Red Sox, breaking Ted Williams' record of seven such seasons. And this at age 38 (he turns 39 in November), and just a season after one of the best World Series performances in history: reaching base 19 times in 25 plate appearances, and hitting .688 (11 for 16) with a 1.948 OPS. Oh, and he was robbed of a grand slam on a great catch by Carlos Beltran, preventing the numbers from being even more ridiculous. Is he the best Boston Red Sox player ever?

No.  For this generation?  Yes, especially in the postseason, even though he doesn't actually have to field his position, which has undoubtedly contributed to his longevity.  All-time, however?  Absolutely not.  Teddy Ballgame never took steroids, and a few years of his prime were taken away by serving in the armed forces.  You can't forget about that.

Don't pass over how dominant Pedro was, either.  As a Yankees fan, it was a miracle if we even got on base against him.  He was incredible. 

[hwangjini_1]

Is he the best Boston Red Sox player ever?

No.  It's still Williams by a healthy margin.

Williams is #1 all-time in Major League OBP, he's #2 all-time in slugging percentage, and he's #2 all-time in OPS.  He's probably the second best offensive player of all-time, and that's with missing multiple seasons in his prime to fight for his country.

Ortiz is 179th in all-time OBP, and is 43rd in OPS.  Those are certainly impressive numbers, but they're not in Williams' league.  Plus, Ortiz is playing in the steroid era, and is linked to PEDs.

Ortiz will always be remembered as an all-time great member of the Sox, but he's not the best.

not even close. i love me some papi, but as a hitter ortiz does not even come close to passing the splendid splinter. williams was an alien. papi is merely super human.

[Donoghus]

C'mon....its Ted Williams & not even that close.

If Williams didn't go to both WWII & Korea, his numbers would've been out of this world.  Even, despite those absences, the guy is still probably the best hitter of all-time. 

Ortiz is the best post-season Red Sox of all time but the best Red Sox of all time belongs to Ted Williams. 

[RLewis35]

Papi most clutch and maybe most valuable given team accomplishments that came so often because of him...

Best - Ted Williams followed by Pedro Martinez.  Pedro 1997-2000 might be the best four year stretch by any pitcher in history.  99-00 certainly is best two year stretch.  And he did it in the steroid era and was clearly NOT on roids.

Don't overlook Pedro.

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

Just to be clear: I wasn't saying Ortiz is better than Williams, I was just asking the question. 

Thanks for the input, everyone.