Ortiz said when it came to his attention, he said something to the players involved.
“I think I did. But I do things in a different way. When I talk to any of the guys on the team, I don’t want to sound like I’m their dad. I make sure that they understand that it’s a friend, a brother, another player, talking to them,” Ortiz said. “That’s why my communication with a lot of them is easy. I have a good relationship with everybody.
“It’s not my job to walk on anyone. I’m just an employee just like anyone else. I’m not a babysitter or anything like that. I’m talking to another man just like me.”
Ortiz does not believe leadership is an issue with the team.
“We have a lot of leaders, a lot of guys capable to change things around. I think that’s not going to be a problem. Sometimes you caught into some situations and things get out of hand for a minute. But the deal that people make about our club last year was bigger than what it was,” he said. “That’s the way I see it.
“We’re the ones who know how our clubhouse runs. I’m one of the older guys here on the team. I know there’s a lot of people watching me, watching what I do. That puts me in a situation where I have to try and do things — not perfectly, because I’m not perfect — but pretty close.”
“We’re here this year, we changed things around. You learn from your mistakes. You learn from the struggle,” Ortiz said. “I’m pretty sure that everybody’s on the same page now and things are going to be different. We have a new manager, Bobby, he has an idea of what he wants to do with all of us.”
Ortiz said at one point he thought he would be leaving the Red Sox before his agents explained that the team had to hire a new general manager and manager before it could deal with the roster.
Ortiz was then offered arbitration, accepted and eventually the sides settled on a one-year, $14.575 million deal.
The deal was settled only a few hours before a hearing that would have decided Ortiz’s salary. According to the slugger, his agents wanted him to remove his diamond earrings and other flashy jewelry before the hearing.
