Ortiz reaches two milestones with 469th homer

ST. PETERSBURG -- With one powerful swing in the sixth inning of Wednesday's game against the Rays, David Ortiz passed Chipper Jones and moved into 32nd place on the all-time homer list and vaulted ahead of Joe DiMaggio into 46th on the RBI list.

But after a 7-5 loss to the Rays, Ortiz was not in a reflective mood.

"You know what? It's funny that you talk about that [stuff], because I've been on TV the past four days and they haven't been talking about that," said Ortiz. "It's unbelievable. I guess bad news sells newspapers."

Video: BAL@BOS: Ortiz gets thrown out of game for arguing

Ortiz was referring to the attention he's received for being ejected from Sunday's game against the Orioles and then suspended for one game for incidental contact with the umpire. Ortiz's suspension is currently under appeal.

"The other day, I think I tied DiMaggio in RBIs," said Ortiz. "In the past four days, all I've seen on TV is, 'Papi got thrown out of the game.' I thought Joe DiMaggio was a [big star], right?

"It's unbelievable. It seems like I'm going to be the first one and the last player ever thrown out of a game. I've been on TV the past four days, every day, just because I got thrown out of the game. It's unbelievable."

The homer was Ortiz's third of the season and 469th of his career. It was also the 1,538th RBI of his career.

Ortiz's solo shot to right-center against Nathan Karns gave the Red Sox a 4-1 lead in the top of the fifth inning.