"All-Star designated hitter David Ortiz has bursitis in his right heel and will be placed in a walking boot, though the team expects he'll avoid a stint on the disabled list.

"We're going to get him out of his spikes for a couple of days and get him in a little bit of a walking boot, just to kind of alleviate some of the pressure," manager Terry Francona said after the Sox split a doubleheader with the Rays last night at Fenway Park [map]. "We'll keep re-evaluating every, I'm sure, every couple of days. We want to get him off that for a little while."

Ortiz was scratched moments before yesterday's opener with what the team initially described as an illness but later changed to bursitis. He was preparing to play until taking his final pregame warmups.

"It was bothering him on the road trip, and when he went out to run his sprints before the game, it kind of grabbed at him a little bit," Francona said. "He was pretty sore before the game."

An MRI was done, and the initial diagnosis was bursitis, the inflammation of the bursa, a sac that cushions joints, muscles and tendons, including the Achilles."