Papi, Manny lead 2020 Red Sox HOF class

BOSTON -- They spent six seasons as teammates, forming the most prolific power-hitting duo in Red Sox history.

In other words, it is most fitting that David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez will be inducted together into the Red Sox Hall of Fame next spring.

Ortiz and Ramirez will be joined by Rich Gedman and the late Bill Dinneen as 2020 Sox Hall of Fame inductees. Dan Duquette, Boston’s general manager from 1994-01, has been chosen as the non-uniformed inductee.

The team’s Hall of Fame Class of 2020 will be honored at a Red Sox Foundation gala on April 30. More details will be announced at a later date.

The headliner will be Big Papi, who is in a class by himself in terms of his impact on the franchise. The lefty slugger was the centerpiece of three World Series championship teams in his 14 seasons in Boston. He was also a force in the community -- something he cemented with his legendary speech to the Fenway fans five days after the tragic Boston Marathon bombings in 2013.

Ted Williams is the only Red Sox player to hit more homers than the 483 Ortiz smashed for Boston. After being released by the Twins in December 2002, Ortiz became a star in Boston, hitting .290 with a .956 OPS and 1,530 RBIs. He is the franchise leader in walk-off homers (10) and game-ending RBIs (17) in the regular season.

But Ortiz was at his best in October. It’s hard to find a postseason category he doesn’t lead the Red Sox in. He is tops in games (76) and homers (17), and he won the Most Valuable Player Award for both the 2004 American League Championship Series and the '13 World Series.

Ortiz would have been enough on his own for an opponent to contend with. Throw in Ramirez, and it’s obvious why the Red Sox were such a force in the mid-2000s.

It was Duquette who brought Ramirez to Boston, signing him to an eight-year, $160 million deal in December 2000.

Ramirez lived up to that hefty price tag by making the All-Star team in each of the eight seasons he played for the Red Sox. A right-handed hitter with a sweet swing, Ramirez played 1,083 games for the Red Sox, hitting .312 with a .999 OPS, 274 homers and 868 RBIs. He had at least 30 homers and 100 RBIs in six straight seasons from 2001-06.

Much like Ortiz, Ramirez was a monster in October, hitting .321 with a .980 OPS and 11 homers in the 43 postseason games he played for the Sox. Together, Ortiz and Ramirez helped lead the Sox to the World Series championship in 2004 and ’07. Ramirez won the World Series MVP Award in '04, when the Sox swept the Cardinals.

Gedman, the pride of Worcester, Mass., realized the dream of being the starting catcher for his hometown Red Sox. In fact, his 1986 team came just one strike away from securing the franchise’s first title since '18.

A left-handed hitter, Gedman was a two-time All-Star and caught one of the best pitching performances in team history -- Roger Clemens' 20-strikeout game against the Mariners on April 29, 1986.

Duquette, from Dalton, Mass., also grew up a die-hard Red Sox fan and then had the thrill of running the front office.

It was Duquette who traded closer Heathcliff Slocumb for two eventual Red Sox Hall of Famers -- Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe. The GM made several other moves that helped pave the way for the 2004 championship, including the trade for Pedro Martinez and signing center fielder Johnny Damon.

Dinneen was an important early part of Red Sox history, spending 1902-06 and part of ’07 as a pitcher for Boston. He started four games in the '03 World Series, going 3-1 with a 2.06 ERA and earning the clinching victory over the Pirates in Game 8 at Huntington Avenue Grounds, marking the first World Series championship in Red Sox franchise history.

In addition to honoring the inductees on April 30, the Sox will also recognize clinching Game 4 of the 2004 World Series as the “Memorable Red Sox Moment.” It was the franchise’s first championship in 86 years.