What went into the decision to pinch-hit Mike Lowell for David Ortiz?
We are trying to do everything in our power to kind of scratch and claw and find a way to win a game. I didn’t think that Mikey was going to face the lefty. I thought they’d make a change. At that point, [Scott] Downs has been so tough on us and if they want to let him face Mikey, I think he was 5-for-9 against him. He’s got some good number. Every night, the way we are situated right now, there is going to be room to be second-guessed. You can either hit for somebody. You can’t hit for somebody or we don’t. I think what we need to do is win the game. When we win the game it will normally seem like the right move. When we lose the game it will seem like the wrong move. How do you handle that situation as a manager, with Ortiz saying he is embarrassed for being pinch-hit for? I think you guys make more of it than we do. That’s not what I’m thinking about during the game. I don’t think David heard me when I was yelling at him right away. The idea is never to embarrass anybody, of course.
