In parts of 20 MLB seasons, David Ortiz established himself as one of the greatest hitters the game of baseball has ever seen. He retired with 541 home runs (which currently ranks as the 17th-most in league history), and he was a 10-time All-Star, seven-time Silver Slugger Award winner, three-time World Series champion, and a one-time World Series MVP. He is also the first primary designated hitter to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on his first ballot.

Most know Ortiz for his time with the Boston Red Sox. He spent 14 seasons of his career in Boston and remains one of the franchise’s greatest players of all time. However, he began his career with the Minnesota Twins and spent six seasons there before they released him in 2002.

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Recently, Torii Hunter, who was teammates with Ortiz during his entire run in Minnesota, addressed this decision over two decades later on the Haymaker Network.

“At this point, we released him because he was still pulling, trying to learn the other way, so he didn’t get to maximize his power with the Twins,” Hunter said about the Twins releasing Ortiz in 2002. “When they released him, they said, ‘Hey, we’re big on defense,’ and he couldn’t play first base at the time. … Now he goes to the Red Sox, and they made him a permanent DH. That’s what we could’ve [done], but we didn’t.”

The Red Sox signed Ortiz ahead of the 2003 season, and it did not take long for him to make an impact. In his first season in Boston, the Dominican Republic native batted .288 and recorded 31 home runs and 101 RBIs. He finished fifth in AL MVP voting and helped Boston reach the postseason for the first time since 1999.

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Just one year later, Ortiz played an instrumental role in helping Boston end its 86-year World Series drought with a 4-0 sweep against the St. Louis Cardinals in 2004.

In 2016, former Red Sox manager Terry Francona spoke about Ortiz and what he meant not just for the organization but for the game of baseball (h/t Scott Lauber of ESPN).

“He went there [to Boston] and, some guys kind of shrink in that atmosphere, and he just blossomed,” Francona said. “It brought out his true personality and he embraced it. He’s been through a lot there. He’s certainly the face of the Red Sox, or one of them, and probably the same goes for the face of baseball.”

Ortiz established himself as a Red Sox legend and remains one of the team’s most important players in franchise history. Luckily for them, it did not take much for him to fall into their lap after Minnesota’s decision back in 2002.