The Red Sox can’t afford to keep playing David Ortiz unless he starts hitting…..soon! Ortiz has played in 38 games for the Red Sox this season and he is 30 for 146 (.205 avg, .625 OPS) with 15 runs scored, 1 homer and 18 RBIs. He often looks lost at the plate as he has whiffed 37 times already this season often looking very bad doing it. The BoSox have started sending out feelers for trade matches and one rumor has them interested in veteran firstbaseman Nick Johnson of the Nationals. The Nationals covet Manny Delcarmen so maybe there is a match. If the Red Sox don’t want to give up Delcarmen then they can look for a cheaper alternative like the Indians’ Ryan Garko. Still, they can’t give Ortiz more than a couple of more weeks to get his bat going.