David Ortiz is homer-less in his last 130 at-bats, and his struggles are starting to consume him. "Every day," the Red Sox slugger said when asked about how often he dwells on the slump. "Every day. Sleeping. Eating. Having breakfast. It's bad. You've got guys around the league that don't even have home run swings and they're hitting home runs like crazy. You think about it. You think, whoa, what's up?" A number of players have sent encouraging text messages to Ortiz in recent weeks. He estimates that he has received between 50 and 70 messages from guys like Philadelphia's Ryan Howard and New York's Carlos Delgado. "Everybody,? Ortiz said Tuesday night. "Just telling me, 'You know how good you are and how good you can be. Things aren't always going to be flowers and roses. We learn from our mistakes and what doesn't break you makes you stronger. So don't listen to any of the crap that people have to say. You've done a whole bunch of things to get it done, and you're going to get it done again.' "