BALTIMORE — On a night when Stephen Drew used his bat to hit two homers and drive in five runs, David Ortiz took his best swings at a couple of dugout phones.
Drew revived the quiet Boston offense with a stellar performance, and the Red Sox beat the Orioles 7-3 last night in a game that featured a memorable and destructive tirade by Ortiz.
After Shane Victorino homered in the seventh to make it 7-2, Ortiz took three balls from Jairo Acencio before umpire Tim Timmons called a strike on a high fastball. Ortiz was furious, and he fully vented that frustration after taking another strike and then striking out with a futile swing.
He yelled at Timmons and was ejected. Ortiz then destroyed the covers of two dugout phones with his bat before charging onto the field, where he was restrained by manager John Farrell and bench coach Torey Lovullo.
Ortiz finally relented, but as a final gesture he threw an elbow pad in Timmons’ direction. Teammate Dustin Pedroia, who covered up to avoid being hit by the spray of shattered plastic, finally got the enraged Ortiz under control.
“I got 17 years in the league and I don’t think I deserve to be disrespected like that,” Ortiz said. “You want to get respect from the players, you respect the players. That was horrible. Both of the pitches, not one.
“The funny thing is he wanted to act like it was the right call. I don’t play that. I hit. You’re not going to take my at-bats away.”
The antics of “Big Papi” didn’t detract from a big victory against a strong division rival.
“We swung the bats great,” Pedroia said. “It’s a good win. Guys get frustrated. It’s part of the game. I just wanted to make sure David didn’t get too bad where he gets suspended or any of that. … He’s the biggest part of our lineup. We can’t afford to lose David for even one game.”