If you’re trying to endear yourself to not only a fan base but the players as well, you could do worse as a new manager than flying to the Dominican Republic for a charity event hosted by the face of your franchise.
Bobby Valentine will be at the winter meetings in Dallas next week, but last night he was with David Ortiz in the Caribbean thanks to an invite the popular designated hitter sent to the skipper after he was introduced as the new manager of the Red Sox.
Ortiz has until Wednesday to accept the Red Sox offer of arbitration but, because he has been so vocal about wanting a multi-year deal, the chances are slim that he will accept. Â He’s expected to meet with his agent on Monday to discuss arbitration and his agent is scheduled to meet with Ben Cherington at the winter meetings some time next week.
Ortiz is big on what he perceives as respect and Valentine seems to have gotten off on the right foot by going down to the Dominican Republic to not only support Ortiz’ charity but to tell him how much he respects him and wants the slugger on his team.
“That speaks to me,’’ Ortiz said, tapping his heart with his fist. “I’m impressed. That’s good stuff.”
(Originally published on Examiner.com)