Not what the Nation was looking for

How else could you respond to the news, via the Boston Herald just as the All-Star Game was set to start tossing, that David Ortiz has a knee injury that might require surgery.

Big Papi may need a little knee procedure.

How else could you face the prospect of missing Ortiz, hitting .314 despite the apparent injury and resulting lack of power, a man so gregarious and ubiquitous in Boston that he’s become the face of the team in all settings?

Sure, there are positive threads in the news to hold on. In all reports the injury is classified as minor. Ortiz has said he fully expects to play the rest of the season without missing any time, and claims he’ll only investigate surgery after the season is over.

All of that is good news, but the very existence of a Big Papi knee condition is horrible news to fans everywhere, most of whom assumed that an Ortiz-Manny Ramirez resurgence was in the immediate offing.

Over the past four years, the pair of Dominican sluggers has formed what is unequivocably the top 3-4 combination in any major league lineup. But this year the dynamic duo has taken a huge step back, Ortiz in terms of power and Ramirez in terms of, well, everything. There’s still significant reason to believe that Ramirez can improve greatly, if for no other reason than the fact that he’s never had such a prolonged struggle at the plate before. But Papi’s knee injury all but assures that he’ll take a large step back from the slugger who hit a team-record 54 homers last year and the hitter who’s hit more than 45 in each of the past three seasons.

Maybe it is minor, and maybe he won’t miss any time. Maybe he’ll even keep hitting .300, frustrating opposing pitchers into making mistakes with his patience. But no matter what he does, Ortiz isn’t hitting 50, and he may not even knock out 30. When combined with the news from ESPN’s Buster Olney that the Yankees are already in contract extension talks with Alex Rodriguez - a player who’s power numbers keep going the other way - yesterday was a pretty dark hour for the Sox’s spot in the baseball hierarchy.

As bad as this news is to fans throughout the Nation, it has to hit significantly harder to Kevin Youkilis and Mike Lowell, tied with Ortiz for the team-lead with 14 homers, the men who have stepped in to replace most of Papi’s diminished power. Both had All-Star first halves, even if Youks wasn’t appropriately rewarded. And because of their blazing starts, both have to be wondering if they can keep up the pace.

So, what does all of this really mean to the team? Let’s just say now would be a great time for J.D. Drew to start earning that mega deal he signed in the offseason. Either that, or at least prepare himself for the “Naaaaancccccy” chants coming soon to a Fenway Park near you.

– Cameron Smith