Is this the beginning of David Ortiz reconsidering his retirement?
It’s not really, but the Red Sox slugger admitted that he wishes he could play longer.
“I wish I could continue playing, but it takes a lot for me to prepare for the games every year,” Ortiz told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. “I’ve been dealing with things the last four years and it gets worse, you know what I’m saying? And so I have to put a lot of effort and a lot of work to play at my highest level out there. At some point, it wears you out.”
Ortiz feels that he could hit for many more years, but his legs won’t allow it.
“I don’t know if I can play til 50,” Ortiz laughed. “Julio Franco, maybe. Yeah, I got a little crazy. I play in a lot of pain. I’ve been taking a lot of anti-inflammatories and stuff to get through it. We have good doctors and training staff, and they work hard with all of us, but it is what it is. Like I say, I love this game and this game is my everything, but it’s not forever.”
So no, Ortiz isn’t reconsidering. It’s the same tack he’s taken all along: he’d love to keep playing, but his body simply won’t allow it. You wouldn’t know it by looking at his numbers, but it seems that this truly is his swan song.
