It’s time to talk David Ortiz out of retiring
COMMENTARY
We’re still talking about this retirement thing?
Maybe there will be some stretch this season when David Ortiz plunges into a prolonged slump, giving some indication of why the designated hitter felt it necessary to retire following the 2016 campaign.
But right now, Ortiz’s offseason announcement seems more like a premature caprice than an unavoidable choice.
It’s been quite the start for the Red Sox’ DH, helping lead his team to first place in the American League East, and probably leaving team personnel wondering how in the world they could even imagine themselves in a similar place in the standings without him in 2017 and beyond.
Hanley Ramirez’s power numbers have yet to consistently materialize. Xander Bogaerts might one day have 20-homer power, and even if Pablo Sandoval does return fully healthy next season and assumes the DH role in order to keep him far away from third base, his career high in home runs is 23 in 2011. He hit 26 in the last two seasons combined.
Ortiz, meanwhile, is on pace for a 35-home run season. He’s 10th in the American League in batting, hitting .319, third in on-base percentage (.413), and second in OPS (1.051). His bomb on Wednesday night against White Sox pitcher Carlos Rodon was the first the lefty had allowed to a left-handed hitter in 197 career plate appearances.
Where are the Red Sox ever possibly going to find similar production going forward?
Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista will be a free agent after this season, but he’s 35 and will likely be looking for Yoenis Cespedes’ money ($75 million). There’s Colby Rasmus or Josh Reddick, or an aged Mark Teixeira to consider, but no bona fide designated slugger to really get your hopes up about.
Unless, just maybe, his name is David Ortiz.
Team owner John Henry ought to have an intimate discussion with his most important player about deferring his decision at least one more season by waving a $25 million check before his eyes. And if that doesn’t convince the 40-year-old to come back for 2017, ask him again. And again.
And again.
Beg. Plead. Bribe. Whatever.
Because the alternative is that these Red Sox, enjoying their taste of first place after spending three of the last four years in the depths of the division, could catch the irrelevancy that currently envelops the New York Yankees.
The 17-11 Sox travel to the sad Bronx for another weekend series against their former rivals with both clubs traveling in different directions. Boston held onto to the AL East penthouse with its 7-3 win over the Chicago White Sox Thursday night, while the Yankees are mired in the basement, seven games back and still looking for their 10th win of the season. Only the Minnesota Twins (8-20) and the Atlanta Braves (7-20) have worse records than the Yankees.
Ortiz looms as that lingering presence that serves as a reminder of when this sort of weekend would come with thirsty anticipation. Instead, there’s really more concern locally about having to listen to the ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball booth for a third straight week than there is the Red Sox’ ability to win at Yankee Stadium.
“You know what I want most of all?’’ Ortiz asked the New York Post back in spring training. “I would love it if the fans at Yankee Stadium gave me a standing ovation.’’
It will happen. Derek Jeter got one at Fenway. So did Mariano Rivera and even Roger Clemens when he retired for the first time.
But the Red Sox should make certain that it happens next year.
It’s not like the Red Sox need Ortiz to change his stance before Memorial Day, but it might help put a pause on opposing teams giving him random cowboy hat or cigars as parting gifts. Fenway Park already has a calendar of events to celebrate the end, but something tells me the Red Sox would be happy to put an end to those plans rather swiftly if it meant one more year of Big Papi at the plate.
So far, there’s no inclination that could be the case.
“I’m done,” Ortiz said in spring training. “I’ll be 41 next year, and every season it gets harder to prepare. I thought about it a lot and like I have said, it was a chapter in my life and now I go on to something else. I’ve been thinking about it for a while now. It’s my time.”
Nah. Not really.
There’s a lot to be said about Ortiz’s desire to not leave the game in the same, broken-down fashion as Willie Mays, nor does he seem the type that will want to still be producing in another four years like Jaromir Jagr. But he’s still a good hitter. He’s still productive, and he still means the world to the Red Sox.
Oh, if the Red Sox somehow win the World Series, Ortiz should probably go, taking the opportunity to go out on top, a la Peyton Manning. So, why not just leave it open? Is the Goodbye Tour really that important?
These Red Sox are different from the downtrodden teams he’s been a part of for the last two seasons, with a definable energy and cohesiveness that has given fans the rightful opportunity to be excited about the prospects. Ortiz, like most of the players on the roster, looks like he’s having fun again.
Nobody wants the guy to linger, but he’s retiring too soon, and with every home run he hits, the questions will only grow louder.
Really?
Who are the Red Sox’ all-time statistical leaders?
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