David Ortiz has fired back at former Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine, who two weeks ago insinuated his designated hitter missed the latter part of the season not because of soreness from an Achilles injury but because his team was out of the playoff hunt.

"Stopping me (from playing) was the decision of the doctors, management, the manager and me," Ortiz said. "The team doctor recommended that I stop playing to not make the situation worse for the tendon.

"... As a player, the game runs through my veins. In the 10 years I have played in Boston, I have been the heart and soul of the organization and not a second has gone by in which David Ortiz, able to go on the field to do what he knows best, he stayed seated instead."