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David Ortiz (left) and Dustin Pedroia were fan favorites today in Fort Myers. (Jim Davis/Globe Staff)
By Peter Abraham, Globe Staff
FORT MYERS, Fla. � Some news, notes, quotes and observations from today's workout:
� Bobby Valentine on the arrival of David Ortiz: "They told me it would be loud and merengue [music]. They were right. The clubhouse seems to be full of David right now. I expect him to have that smile as often as possible so he can light up our clubhouse and our dugout. I'm hoping he can swing the bat the way he did last year. Don't know that he can hit lefthanders equally as well, I hope he can. Provide some leadership, provide some experience and put some fear into the hearts of opposing pitchers."
Hmm. "Don't know that he can lefthanders equally as well." Bobby V seems to be issuing a challenge to his DH.
Photos: Red Sox spring training scenes
� After hitting a few balls in the dirt during batting practice, Ortiz turned to the fans and said, "If I don't start hitting bombs, I'm going back to the fried chicken."� Valentine spent some time slapping ground balls to an infield of Lars Anderson, Oscar Tejeda, Jose Iglesias and Will Middlebrooks.
Hard as he tried, he could not get a ball past Iglesias. The kid was showing off, too, flipping the ball backhanded to second base with his glove several times.
Valentine said, from a quick look, that Iglesias has better range than Rey Ordonez, the defensive whiz he managed with the Mets.
� Iglesias has gained 10 pounds and cut down on his body fat. He launched two balls over the fence during batting practice today. "Just lucky," he said.
