Stop asking David Ortiz to call off his retirement plans
COMMENTARY
Yes. That’s right. You read the headline correctly. With this here column, I’m asking—no, I’m damn near begging—for a moratorium, effective immediately, on all discussions surrounding the prospect of David Ortiz reneging on his retirement plan and playing another season for the Red Sox.
This ban will be active in all physical spaces and across all social media platforms, which means that if you’re a reporter in the Sox clubhouse, and one of your colleagues starts in with a familiar, “So, David, are you suuuuuuure…“— you’re required to slap the tape recorder out of his or her hand and smash it to pieces with the nearest fungo bat.
If you’re on Twitter, and Ortiz hits a home run, and your timeline erupts with cries of “He won’t leave! He can’t leave! He’d be so stupid to leave!” — it’s your obligation to block those users immediately.
If you’re in the stands one afternoon at Fenway, and you hear a bright-eyed, innocent young fan scream out “Papi! It’s my birthday! All I want in the whole wide world is for you to come back for another season!” — you must scold that child mercilessly in front of his or her parents, presumably ruining the birthday celebration. Then pause and scold the parents in front of the child.
Now listen, I know what you’re thinking: This is a lot to ask.
But the truth is that we have a serious problem on our hands.
***
It all started back in November, when David Ortiz celebrated his 40th birthday by announcing that 2016 would be his last major league season. In turn, and for good reason, the 2016 campaign morphed into a farewell tour, with a year-long celebration at Fenway, and with Ortiz set to receive parting gifts at every stadium stop along the way. So far the Royals have blessed Ortiz with BBQ sauce. The White Sox gave him a cigar humidor. The Astros gave him a cowboy hat. Moving forward, maybe the Orioles will give him a commemorative dugout telephone; maybe the Yankees can commission a sculpture of Paul Quantrill’s right arm; maybe the Twins will douse him with a Gatorade cooler filled with their tears. Beyond that, who knows? This is the kind of thing where some teams might try to get cute and buy Papi a rocking chair or bifocals; you know, something becoming of a man his age. Then again, it’s hard to bag on a guy for being old while he’s simultaneously beating the snot out of you, and that’s what Ortiz is doing to opponents on a nearly nightly basis.
Entering Memorial Day weekend, Ortiz was the MAJOR LEAGUE leader in OPS, slugging percentage, doubles and RBI. At 40 years old, he was on pace to hit .333 with 40 homers and 151 RBI. I’m sorry, that would be a *career-high* 151 RBI. No wait, I’m sorry, that would be a *future Hall of Famer’s career-high* 151 RBI. He’s also well on his way to a 10th career All-Star appearance. If the Sox stay in the pennant race, Ortiz, even as a DH, could sneak into the conversation for AL MVP.
Now, just so we’re clear, the previous paragraph is not the serious problem that I alluded to earlier. What we’ve seen from Ortiz this season is downright beautiful. It’s magical. Of course, some people will continue to speculate about where he’s finding the strength and durability to do what he’s doing. These people are obsessed with serving as the purveyors of truth; the renegades willing step up and ask the hard-hitting questions. And if you’re one of these people — congrats! But no one cares. We all know that baseball is a dirty game. We all know about the various truths that might linger below the surface. More importantly, we know that what’s going on right now is a lot more significant than lame tattletale speculation. We know that even in the worst-case scenario, nothing can touch Ortiz’s place in Red Sox history. Nothing will change what he’s meant to Red Sox fans. Nothing can erase his impact after the marathon bombing, when this city faced the kind of real life problems that remind you that silly sports controversies are nothing but a luxury.
Ortiz transcends all that. And again, that why what’s happening is so remarkable. In a year that was supposed to be about reflecting on his past greatness, Ortiz has granted us the power to relive it first hand. Forget the pregame ceremonies, gift exchanges and scoreboard tributes; Ortiz is a living, breathing tribute to himself. Every game is like Night at the Museum. And all things considered, there’s nothing more that we could possibly ask for.
And that’s the problem.
The big, serious problem from the start of this column.
That we keep asking for more. That even worse, we’re expecting it. That while this story trends towards a fairy tale ending, we’re like jaded studio execs more concerned with cashing in on a sequel. That we’re like, “Wow, David. This is legendary! No 40-year-old has ever dominated professional baseball the way you are right now. So why not come back at 41 and do it again? No biggie, right?” That whether it’s questions in the clubhouse, hot takes on social media or passion pouring out of the stands, the better Ortiz plays the more pressure he gets to keep playing.
And I know. I get it. It’s all in fun. It’s inspired by love. More than anything we’re all in denial. No one wants to consider a world where David Ortiz doesn’t play for the Red Sox — especially when he’s still playing so well. But here’s the thing: It’s not up to us. This was his choice. And you can be damn sure it’s not a choice he took lightly. “Life is based on different chapters,” Ortiz said in that retirement video, “and I think I’m ready to experience the next one in my life.”
This doesn’t mean that he can’t change his mind. It doesn’t mean that he won’t change his mind. But it’s a decision he should be free to make on his own, without outside pressure, without being asked about it constantly, and without the impression that because of this season’s success, he’d somehow let Boston down by following through with the original plan. What, so he can come back next year, maybe, finally, start to break down, and limp away like Willie Mays at Shea? So that some of the same people begging him to stay, who were some of the same people who spent the last five years screaming for him to leave, can go on and make a living calling Ortiz fat, slow and selfish?
Yeah, no thanks. So let’s just stop all the “Don’t retire” talk because Ortiz deserves better. He deserves to ride out this last season with the top down, or at least with a few buttons down, without yielding for passersby trying to call a bluff on the biggest decision of his life. He deserves the freedom to live in this moment, enjoy this moment, and keep blasting this moment into the upper deck.
And then once the moment is over, we can all be happy knowing that we appreciated it while it was here instead of pretending it would go on forever.
David Ortiz’ Walk-Off Hits
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