David Ortiz Says It Could Be, "time to move on" Without Multi-year Extension From Red Sox

David Ortiz — Boston icon, World Series MVP, Beantown mayoral write-in candidate, etc. — is a free agent at the end of the 2014 season. That hasn’t stopped Big Papi from beginning to angle for a new, multi-year contract for 2015 and beyond.

Ortiz, who will be 38 years old and earn 15 million this season, was a guest on Boston CBS4’s “Sports Final” Sunday night, and the topic of a contract extension came up. Ortiz indicated it would be “time to move on” without a multi-year extension.

Call this posturing, plain and simple, from Ortiz, who remains a productive player (three straight seasons with an OPS north of .900). Eventually, though, it does not behoove the Red Sox to lock up a designated hitter approaching 40 to anything more than a year-to-year deal. As long as Ortiz continues to produce his late-career averages of 25-30 home runs, 100-ish RBIs with an OPS around .900 along with an excellent strikeout-to-walk ratio, the Red Sox will be glad to have him aboard … to a point.

Interestingly enough, here’s the ESPN poll that shows Red Sox Nation is fairly split on how to deal with one of the club’s all-time legends.