Count David Ortiz among the people caught off guard by Robinson Cano’s decision to leave the Big Apple for the Mariners.
Speaking on WEEI’s Bradford Files podcast on Friday, the Red Sox designated hitter expressed surprise the Yankees let a player who could have been the face of their franchise going forward get away.
“I couldn’t believe the Yankees let that walk away,” Ortiz said. “He’s the face, as long as he’s played for the Yankees, he was the face of that ballclub. He was backing up everybody.”
Ortiz said the Red Sox won’t be losing any sleep over Cano’s departure, and expressed some doubt he would remain a high-profile player on a West Coast team that hasn’t qualified for the playoffs since 2001.
“That’s great news for us. That’s great news,” Ortiz said. “This guy hurt us. He is the guy that, you’re never going to forget about him because he puts up monster numbers. He puts up some monster numbers. Now let’s see how everything goes with him on the West Coast.”