David Ortiz BOSTON, MA – OCTOBER 10: David Ortiz #34 of the Boston Red Sox tips his cap after the Cleveland Indians defeated the Boston Red Sox 4-3 in game three of the American League Divison Series to advance to the American League Championship Series at Fenway Park on October 10, 2016 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Any rumor about David Ortiz thinking about coming back for another season in Major League Baseball can now be put to rest, we think.

Ortiz seemed to close the door shut on his baseball career with a recent interview with ESPN Deportes, in which he says he has now moved on from the rigors of playing baseball every day.

“My playing time has already expired,” Ortiz told ESPN Deportes.

Ortiz previously made his decision to retire pretty clear, but after a strong season in a Red Sox uniform and a run to the playoffs (which concluded in disappointing fashion), there were some who felt Ortiz may give a second thought to retirement.

And perhaps that thought did cross his mind at some point, but he sounds like a guy ready to step back now.

“Baseball is not something that you wake up today and you say, ‘I’ll play tomorrow,'” Ortiz said “Baseball is something that carries a lot of sacrifice, a lot of preparation, and there is a reason why we train the entire year to play it, practice every day, especially during the season, because it is a sport of consistency.”

This also likely means Ortiz will not participate in the upcoming World Baseball Classic for the Dominican Republic team, at least as a player. Who wouldn’t want to see Ortiz as a part of the Dominican Republic team in a coaching capacity?

For now, it seems Ortiz has moved on, but I have to imagine we’ll see him around the baseball world in some way or another in the years to come. Let’s hope that’s the case at least, because his personality alone is part of what can make baseball fun.

[ESPN]

About Kevin McGuire

Contributor to Athlon Sports and The Comeback. Previously contributed to NBCSports.com. Host of the Locked On Nittany Lions Podcast. FWAA member and Philadelphia-area resident.