 After going 0–for-14 in the first three games of the 2008 ALCS against the Tampa Bay Rays, Ellsbury was benched in favor of Crisp with only a pinch hitting at-bat in game 4.He did not play in the final three games of the series, and the Sox eventually lost the series 4–3.In 2008, Ellsbury was one of three active non-Hispanic Native American players in Major League Baseball, along with Kyle Lohse and Joba Chamberlain.