Red Sox Legend David Ortiz Hints At Recruiting Efforts To Bring Juan Soto To Boston

Big Papi hits the recruiting trail...
Jul 21, 2024; Cooperstown, New York, USA; Hall of Famer David Ortiz is introduced during the National Baseball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Cooperstown, NY. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images
Jul 21, 2024; Cooperstown, New York, USA; Hall of Famer David Ortiz is introduced during the National Baseball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Cooperstown, NY. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images
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David Ortiz has already done a heck of a lot of good for the Boston Red Sox. Could he have one more miracle in store?

Ortiz won three World Series titles in Boston, and though he's been retired since 2016, he'd love to see them win one more. The best path to a championship is to get more superstars like Ortiz, and the Red Sox have the opportunity to do so by signing outfielder Juan Soto this winter.

At this stage, everyone who has had a meeting with Soto thinks they have a chance, so forgive Red Sox fans for getting their hopes up. But it never hurts to have a franchise icon put in a good word with the player a team is recruiting, and it sure seems like that's what Ortiz is doing in regards to Soto.

In an interview Thursday with EL VOCERO, Ortiz said he felt hopeful about the prospect of Soto coming to Boston, while hinting at his own involvement in the recruiting process.

“I see him on the Red Sox. I’m telling you the truth. I see him there unless something different happens, because right now everyone wants him, but even I am doing my due diligence because I would like to have that stud on my team,” Ortiz said (translated from Spanish).

“Soto is a phenomenon that everyone wants because he is a full package, and whoever signs him for the next 12 years will be guaranteed a couple of championships.”

Though he doesn't explicitly say so, it sounds as though Ortiz is at least attempting to sway Soto in some fashion to join the Red Sox, which can't hurt. And he had one more recruiting tactic that he displayed in the aforementioned interview: the prospect of playing for Boston manager Alex Cora.

“In Boston, he will have the best manager in the major leagues, which is Alex Cora, in my opinion," Ortiz said. "Cora is a guy who has unique chemistry with his players, which I would like to take back 15 years to play for Alex Cora. A player who cannot play for him will not be able to play for anyone because he is a brilliant guy, and anyone who does not learn with him has no common sense.”

Can Big Papi help bring Red Sox fans back the joy they've been missing the last few seasons? We'll all have to wait and see what Soto decides.

More MLB: Red Sox Youngster Facing Increased Pressure Following Chris Sale's Cy Young Award


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Jackson Roberts
JACKSON ROBERTS

Jackson Roberts is a former Division III All-Region DH who now writes and talks about sports for a living. A Bay Area native and a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Jackson makes his home in North Jersey. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, Patriots, and Warriors, and he recently added the Devils to his sports fandom mosaic. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding Boston Red Sox On SI, please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org