Ortiz: Being enshrined in Hall is ‘important’

BALTIMORE — With each day that passes, the end comes more sharply into focus. The Red Sox have 11 regular-season games remaining, which means that’s how many David Ortiz has left in his exemplary career.

Then there’s the postseason and then he’ll retire. It seemed so abstract when he announced 10 months ago this would be his last go-round. In the heat of a pennant race, it was easy to set aside. Now it’s getting pushed to the forefront.

Two weeks ago when the Red Sox made their final scheduled trip to Toronto, Ortiz did a news conference. He did another Tuesday night at Camden Yards and will do the same when the Red Sox visit St. Petersburg and New York, closing out their American League East stops for the year.

As Ortiz sat in the visitor’s dugout prior to Boston’s 5-2 win over the Orioles, Big Papi was at times introspective, at times funny, at times expansive. The only query that made him a bit emotional came early in the 17-minute session when he was asked why this is the right time to call it quits. Yes, he’s 40 years old. After his three-run blast in the seventh off Orioles starter Kevin Gausman, Ortiz also has 36 homers and 121 RBIs to go along with an amazing 47 doubles.

Ortiz paused. He sighed.

“It’s just, my body, just,” Ortiz began haltingly, before finding the right words to express the feelings that had surfaced. “I wish I could keep playing. It takes a lot out of me to prepare every year for the game. I’ve been dealing with this for pretty much the last four years, and every year it gets worse. You know what I’m saying?

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“I’ve got to put a lot of effort and work into preparing to perform at the highest level out there. And at some point, it wears you out.”

Ortiz has been a player who, over 20 years in the big leagues, has become known for getting the biggest hits in the biggest games. He’s one of the biggest reasons the Red Sox have won three World Series championships and are well-positioned to make a run at a fourth this …

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