NEW YORK -- David Ortiz took batting practice for the second straight game and reported that "everything's going pretty normal," as he tries to come back from a strained Achilles heel that has sidelined him for more than a month.
Ortiz hasn't tested the heel by running by much, though, and when asked if thought there was a chance he could be back in the lineup Tuesday night when the Sox open a homestand, he said: "I don't think so. But I'm finally feeling better. Hopefully before (the team leaves for its Aug. 26 road trip). We'll see how it goes once I start running. Hopefully (on the homestand). If things continue the way they are, yeah."
"You know how injuries are. You take your time, you heal and when you're ready to go, you're ready to go. I'm finally seeing the light when it comes down to my injury. My injury has been a process of a six-week period. When I first got injured, I heard that (timetable) and that's not what you want to hear at the time. You're thinking about 15 days at the most. But now that I'm seeing the result of feeling better, it's a six-week kind of thing."
With Ortiz sidelined on this trip, the Sox scored three runs or fewer in seven of the 10 games. As Ortiz watched from the dugout, he knew he could have made a difference.
"It's difficult," he said. "Right now, we're in the last quarter of the season and we definitely want to be able to win some games. Hopefully, things are going to get better."