During Saturday's first official team workout at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, it was revealed that new manager Bobby Valentine and GM Ben Cherington collectively decided to ban the presence of beer from the Red Sox clubhouse, a move that got a lot of people talking.
Boston designated hitter David Ortiz was one of many people in the organization that are all in favor of the move, saying that drinking is just one of many distractions baseball players have over the course of a season.
"We're not here to drink. We're here to play baseball. You know what I'm saying? This ain't no bar. This is an organization, a place that needs a lot of athleticism. Alcohol has nothing to do with that. People have alcohol in their houses. If you want to drink it, drink at home," said Ortiz. "Bobby was talking about some rules he's going to have. To be honest. They're not rules. They're reminders. They're things that every organization has. We just need to execute as players and follow up. I think Bobby had great ideas he let us know. Our owners, they did what they do every year - go out there and chase good players. the reason why I stepped up and said something was for the new players, to get the right idea about what we're trying to do." (via WEEI)
Through the slanderous article published by the Boston Globe to the negative public perception of the team during the offseason, Ortiz encouraged his teammates to take pride in both themselves in the organization in which they represent nearly every single day.
"Bobby said one thing that is absolutely true. When you do something that embarrasses this organization, you're embarrassing yourself, too," said Ortiz. "It's like I told my teammates: Wearing the Red Sox on your chest, on your jersey, you've got to be proud of that. you've got to be absolutely proud of it because of the history of this organization. Hopefully everybody take that personal, be responsible and know that we're employees here. We have rules to follow. We have a boss that, we need to do what he wants us to do." (via WEEI)
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