Boston Red Sox ink David Ortiz to long term commitment deal

One June 23rd, 2017, the Boston Red Sox retired No.34 to honor the great David Ortiz. Though his days as a player are behind him, his career with the Red Sox is far from over.

David Ortiz is a name that will forever be a part of Boston Red Sox history. As a player, he set many Red Sox records and slugged 541 home runs in his career. He is widely considered the greatest designated hitter of all time.

While his stats were enough to make jaws drop, what people remember most about Ortiz were his clutch moments. When the Red Sox were down, no one came up clutch more than Big Papi. His late game heroics saved the Red Sox on many occasions, most notably in the 2004 playoffs, which, in case you’d forgotten, resulted in the first World Series trophy for Boston in 86 years.

As a person, Ortiz made just as large of an impact on the Boston community. He was the glue that held Boston together in 2013 after the Boston Marathon bombing. He has been heavily involved with Dana-Farber and the Jimmy Fund during his time in Boston and started his own charity called the David Ortiz Children Fund.

Today on Twitter, David Ortiz foreshadowed more of the good he will be doing, telling fans to brace themselves for some news.

Welcome back, Big Papi

As a baseball player and fan who grew up during Ortiz’ illustrious career, there is nothing that makes me happier than the announcement the Boston Red Sox made today: that David Ortiz has committed to working with the Red Sox as a mentor and recruiter, as well as working with Fenway Sports Management.

The Red Sox made the announcement via their website today, and while it may not be the comeback some are hoping for, having Ortiz back in any capacity is a win for Boston.

"In the announcement, Ortiz is quoted as saying “I’m happy to be able to help the Red Sox organization I love in any way I can. Whether that’s offering advice to a young player, helping convince a free agent that there’s no better city to play in than Boston, or representing the club in the community and with its partners, it’s great to be part of the Red Sox organization. It feels like I never left.”"

Ortiz’ role moving forward

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Don’t expect the Red Sox batting average to shoot up by 100 points, but you can be confident that there will be a sense of calm around the Red Sox clubhouse. Having a player in your corner who’s been through it all and succeeded at every level and every age is a huge advantage.

As a young and talented team, Ortiz will provide experience and advice for those who need it. Players like Rafael Devers will be able to learn how to succeed in Boston from someone who did it for 14 seasons. I’m not forgetting about you, Dustin Pedroia, I’m just excited to have Papi back.

With the Indians looking unstoppable, the Red Sox need to pull out all of the stops as the playoffs approach. What better to motivate this talented bunch than the future hall of famer?

In addition to the effect he’ll have on the players, Ortiz will draw support from the fans. If there’s one thing that puts people in those small, uncomfortable, wooden seats, its David Ortiz. Seriously, people will pack in like sardines and suffer from Fenway-sore-butt-syndrome just because Ortiz is in attendance.

Next: Boston Red Sox: 5 things we love about David Ortiz

All in all, I’m siked. Get your 34 jerseys while they’re in stock, because they’ll be selling like hot cakes. Welcome back No.34. You may not be on the field in the future but you’ll always be the heart and soul of Red Sox Nation.