Boston Red Sox

Reporter explains how a young David Ortiz spared her from locker room harassment

Published Nov. 15, 2016 2:41 p.m. ET

Brett Smiley

Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz made an impression on a lot of people over his lengthy MLB career and during his minor-league days as well. So while his official farewell tour ended with Boston's elimination in the ALDS, there are still stories to tell.

One account from Ortiz's early playing days as a member of Minnesota's Triple-A affiliate, the Salt Lake Buzz, comes from Deseret News (Utah) reporter Amy Donaldson.

Donaldson explains in her story that she sought Ortiz, then age 23 in 1999, for a series of stories examining what it was like to be a minority athlete in Utah. She writes that much of what she heard and saw in the locker room was not pleasant or welcoming to a female reporter.

But while she was interviewing Ortiz, he went to bat for her:

"I don’t know what happened to the left of us, I just heard the laughing. My eyes stayed locked on Ortiz, who without hesitating, turned to his teammates and sent a message that not only changed some of the behavior, it gave me an idea to prevent this situation.

'Hey, guys,' he said smiling and without raising his voice, 'Leave her alone. She's just trying to do her job.'

Then he turned back to me and continued whatever story he was telling me. No one got mad. No one responded. No one argued. And, not surprisingly, whatever was going on near us, stopped."

A leader from his early days and beyond.

Take a couple minutes and read Donaldson's story in its entirety.