A third dimension

RED SOX 12, Indians 7 The playoffs are often referred to as the second season. But for David Ortiz, they're the third season. Ortiz' first season was a nightmare that lasted all of April and May. His second finished yesterday one solitary RBI shy of 100, a total that once seemed unthinkable. His third? What he does when the Red Sox open the playoffs against the Los Angeles Angels later this week is anyone's guess, but Ortiz is proud to be in a position to be a factor. ``I always like to pull the positive things out of a situation,'' Ortiz said. ``Thank God things got a lot better. In my mind, I got 120 RBI, I'm telling you. My first two months of the season, it was something that I don't ever want to feel again. I don't think about it anymore, because it would mentally crush you. It was just something I'm never going to forget about, because it can't get any worse than that.'' Yesterday, Ortiz fell agonizingly shy of a personal milestone that on the one hand was just a number, but on another level meant something to him, in a 12-7 victory over the Indians. Ortiz was attempting to reach 100 RBI for the sixth time in the last seven seasons. He started the day with 97 and promptly singled home a pair with a line drive to right-center in the first inning. He didn't bat again with a runner on base until the eighth, when he struck out against reliever Jess Todd with two outs and two on, and the sun beginning to set behind Fenway Park. ``God dang, you couldn't see the (bleeping) ball at the end,'' Ortiz said. ``Those shadows (stink). He threw me two pitches to kill, but I never saw them. They were right there, but I didn't pick them up until the very end. Those shadows always kill me. That's OK.'' He had earlier missed a chance to reach 100 when Jed Lowrie blasted a two-out grand slam in the sixth with Ortiz on deck. ``We were joking with him afterward,'' said outfielder Joey Gathright. ``We said, `Lowrie, I don't know. You might get released tomorrow.' '' All kidding aside, what Ortiz has done over the last four months is admirable. Shaking off first a horrendous start and then allegations linking him to performance-enhancing drugs, he still managed to post numbers that would make others envious, blasting 28 home runs and driving in 99. From June 6 to the end of the season, no American Leaguer hit more homers (27) or drove in more runs (78) than Ortiz. That's why he wasn't sweating falling just shy of the century mark yesterday. ``It all depends on how people want to look at it,'' he said. ``Me, I think the season was a challenge. . . . Everything started really bad. A lot of things were going on in my head. Then, at a point, I put it together, and here we are.'' Ortiz is looking forward to seeing what he can do in the postseason. He's no longer batting third or fourth, but he's still a weapon lower in the order, where he has seen plenty of baserunners. ``I'm just going to go out and not put any pressure on myself,'' he said. ``I know everyone's going to be really careful with me in the playoffs, and I'm going to take what they give me.'' Bring on Season 3. ``It's not how you start,'' Ortiz said, ``it's how you finish.'' - jtomase@bostonherald.com