Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz hit the 510th home run of his career during Friday’s 3-2 loss to the New York Yankees, passing former Yankee Gary Sheffield to take sole possession of 25th place on the all-time homers list, per MLB Stat of the Day.
Unfortunately for the Red Sox, Ortiz’s line-shot, two-run homer off Yankees pitcher Michael Pineda in the first inning represented the only runs the team would score all game.
Down 3-2 in the top of the ninth inning, Boston managed to load the bases for Ortiz with one out, but the slugger struck out looking and was subsequently ejected for arguing the call.
Yankees closer Andrew Miller then fanned Red Sox first baseman Hanley Ramirez for the final out, improving New York’s record to 10-17 while dropping Boston’s to 17-12.
In addition to moving him into the top 25 of the all-time list, Friday’s home run was Ortiz’s 452nd in a Red Sox uniform, pulling him even with Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski for second place on the franchise list, per ESPN Stats & Info.
The leader, of course, is legendary outfielder Ted Williams, who hit each of his 521 home runs in a Boston uniform.
Interestingly enough, Friday’s long ball was Ortiz’s 50th against the Yankees, making him just the sixth player ever to slug at least 50 career homers against baseball’s pre-eminent villains, per MLB Stat of the Day.
The list is unsurprisingly full of former Red Sox, with Ortiz joined by Jimmie Foxx (70), Williams (62), Manny Ramirez (55), Hank Greenberg (53) and Yastrzemski (52). Of the six players, Greenberg is the only one who never played for the Red Sox.
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