Papi loyal to DR, but Classic swan song unlikely

NEW YORK — David Ortiz entered Tuesday night’s Red Sox game against the Yankees with six regular-season games remaining in his career, approaching another Boston postseason run. Ortiz said he will go as far as his 40-year-old body will take him.

To that end, Ortiz said that although he’d love to play again for his native Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic in March, such a scenario is unlikely.

Though Ortiz left the door to join the defending Classic champions slightly open, he said he’s on his last legs.

“I would love to represent my country,” Ortiz said, “but I’m in a situation where I’ve got to fight every day to get ready for a game. My body is so happy that this is over. My body is counting the days. It’s hard to play baseball when you’re 40. I’m not going to lie to you, especially when you’re looking around and everyone is 20.

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“But [the Dominicans] have a lot of good, young players. I know they’re going to do really well. If I can do anything on the other side for the Dominican ballclub at the time, I’ll probably do something about it, but I don’t think I’m going to be able to play.”

Ortiz wasn’t a member of the Dominican team that swept through the 2013 Classic with a 7-0 record, defeating Puerto Rico for the championship at AT&T Park in San Francisco. But he …

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