David Ortiz Oct 26, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Fox Sports broadcaster David Ortiz speaks on field after game two between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees in the 2024 MLB World Series at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The World Series is back in the Bronx, so you know the crowd will be boisterous. And they also don’t forget about their longstanding rivals.

With the Fox Sports broadcast preparing for Game 3 of the World Series on Monday, fans welcomed Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz in the only way they know how on the Fox pregame show.

“Papi sucks! Papi Sucks!” the Yankee fan-heavy crowd repeated over and over again.

The Yankees, Boston Red Sox rivalry has been going strong since the early 1900s, and it shows no signs of slowing down. And of all the players in the longstanding rivalry, Ortiz especially had the pinstripes figured out.

He had a .303 batting average with 271 hits, 53 home runs, 171 RBIs and 150 runs scored in 243 games against the Yankees in his career. Ortiz spent 14 seasons of his 20-year career sporting a Red Sox uniform. He’s very beloved in Boston. Which means it’s the complete opposite for the opposing AL East team.

After every Yankees loss, Papi uses the same catchphrase:

Ortiz is on the same pregame set with former Yankee legends Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez. As expected, Yankees fans welcomed them both with open arms with a “Derek Jeter” chant.

That’s all they said, was his name over and over. Simple enough.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are two games up on the Yankees, so hopefully the change of scenery will do the team good. Aaron Judge’s bat has been missing in action. He’s 1-for-9 with six strikeouts in his first two career World Series games.

It’s do or die for him, and the rest of the Yankee bats. Ortiz did give his prediction for the end of the game, picking the Yankees to win, 7-3, “So the fans like me,” he said. So perhaps he gained a little more favor from the fanbase than he did at the beginning of the pregame show.

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About Jessica Kleinschmidt

Jess is a baseball fan with Reno, Nev. roots residing in the Bay Area. She is the host of "Short and to the Point" and is also a broadcaster with the Oakland A's Radio Network. She previously worked for MLB.com and NBC Sports Bay Area.