David Ortiz sets record for most career hits by a DH

David Ortiz tied Harold Baines' record for most career hits as a designated hitter on Tuesday, and wasted very little time on Wednesday night earning sole possession of the mark with hit number 1,689. Facing the team that originally signed him as an international free agent all the way back in 1992, Ortiz took an Aaron Harang pitch the opposite way for a first-inning double to move past Baines in the record books.

Ortiz would add a home run in the third inning, the 420th of his career, giving him a pair of hits as well as three runs driven in on a night where the Red Sox would win 11-4, evening the record of their west coast trip at 3-3.

Ortiz is now hitting .331/.412/.636 on the season, and, despite being 37 years old, has the highest OPS+ of his entire, Hall-of-Fame-caliber career. While he's played a few hundred games as a first baseman and pinch hitter, the bulk of Ortiz's playing time has come as a DH, where he's hit .290/.385/.560 with that record 1,690 hits, as well as 370 homers and 913 walks. Those 370 home runs have been and are the record for the position as well, and he's got a legitimate chance to surpass Edgar Martinez's 986 career walks as a DH so long as he stays on the field a little longer.

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