Table of Biography
David Ortiz is a retired Dominican-American professional baseball player. David Ortiz is known as a designated hitter and first baseman who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1997 to 2016, primarily for the Boston Red Sox.
Early Life
David Ortiz was born on November 18, 1975, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. His birth name is David Américo Ortiz Arias. According to the birth date, he is currently 48 years old and has a birth sign of Scorpio. He holds dual nationality of Dominican-American and belongs to Dominican ethnicity. Moreover, he received a United States citizenship at the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston on June 11, 2008.
He was born to Americo Enrique Ortiz and Angela Rosa Arias. His father inspired Ortiz, who played baseball in the Dominican pro and semi-pro leagues for many years. Moreover, he was the eldest of four children of his parents. However, he has not disclosed the names of his siblings in the media or public.
Caption: David Ortiz with his father (Source: MLB.com)
Education
Additionally, he went to the Estudia Espaillat High School and there he championed the game of basketball.
Professional Career
David Ortiz was signed by the Seattle Mariners on November 28, 1992. In 1994, he made his professional debut for the Mariners of the Arizona League, batting .246 with two home runs and 20 RBI.
By 1995, he improved his averages to .332 with four home runs and 37 RBI. In 1996, he was promoted to the Single-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers of the Midwest League, the Mariners’ farm team. He established himself as one of the Mariners’ top-hitting prospects, batting.322 with 18 home runs and 93 RBI.
Despite his outstanding year in the Mariners’ team, Ortiz got traded to the Minnesota Twins on September 13, 1996, as the player to be named later to complete an earlier deal for Dave Hollins.
He rose quickly through the Twins system in 1997. Though he began with the High-A Fort Myers Miracle, he rapidly advanced through Double-A (New Britain Rock Cats) and Triple-A Salt Lake Buzz. He combined to hit.317 across three levels, with 31 home runs and 124 RBI, earning a September call-up to the Twins’ MLB team.
Joined Minnesota Twins
After spending parts of six seasons with the Minnesota Twins with unremarkable results, he joined the Red Sox, where he played a key role in ending the team’s 86-year World Series championship drought in 2004, as well as winning championships in 2007 and 2013. He was named the World Series MVP in 2013.
In his first five seasons with the team, he averaged 41 home runs and 128 runs batted in (RBIs), leading the American League (AL) twice in the latter category and setting the team’s single-season record of 54 home runs in 2006. He finished in the top five of the AL’s Most Valuable Player voting all five years.
Played with the Boston Red Sox for 20 seasons and Post Career
During his 14 seasons with the Red Sox, he was a ten-time All-Star, seven-time Silver Slugger winner, and widely recognized as one of the finest designated hitters of all time. He won the Edgar Martínez Award for outstanding DH eight times and established major league records for career home runs (485), RBIs (1,569), and hits (2,192) as DH. Moreover, he had ten seasons with 30 home runs and 100 RBIs, and he batted .300 or better seven times.
Caption: David Ortiz batting (Source: Gold Medal Impressions)
After a drop in his offensive performance from 2008 to 2012, he had a significant rebound in his last four seasons, and in his last season, he led the AL in doubles, RBIs, and slugging percentage, propelling the team back to the postseason.
Moreover, he retired with 541 home runs, 632 doubles, and 1,768 RBIs. After his retirement, he joined MLB on Fox as a part-time sports analyst for the coverage of the 2017 World Series. In 2018, Ortiz and Michael Chiklis co-hosted the podcast David Ortiz: The Big Papi Story. In late 2019, he returned as a full-time studio analyst following the June 2019 shootings.
David Ortiz – Awards
During his successful career, he has earned several awards and achievements. Some of his highlights and awards are 10× All-Star (2004–2008, 2010–2013, 2016), 3× World Series champion (2004, 2007, 2013), World Series MVP (2013), ALCS MVP (2004), 7× Silver Slugger Award (2004–2007, 2011, 2013, 2016), 2× AL Hank Aaron Award (2005, 2016), Roberto Clemente Award (2011),AL home run leader (2006), 3× AL RBI leader (2005, 2006, 2016), Boston Red Sox No. 34 retired, and Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame.
Net Worth 2024
According to 2022 data, his net worth is expected to be $55 million. Ortiz also has sponsorships from brands such as Coca-Cola, Dunkin’ Donuts, MasterCard, Jet Blue, New Balance, and Marucci. From there he made millions of dollars. Annually, he collected around $4.5 million in endorsements
Relationship Status
Caption: David Ortiz’s family photo (Source: Boston Herald)
On November 16, 2002, David Ortiz married Tiffany Ortiz, who is a humanitarian and entrepreneur. With the marriage, the couple has three children, Jessica Ortiz, D’Angelo, and Alexandra Ortiz.
June 2019 shooting
On June 9, 2019, Ortiz was shot in the back. The incident occurred inside the Dial Bar and Lounge in East Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. According to the camera footage, two males arrived on a motorcycle. Then one man jumped off and shot him in the back. Following the event, he immediately rushed to a nearby clinic called Abel Gonzalez.
Then, three physicians execute a six-hour operation to rescue him. Later, he transfers to Massachusetts General Hospital for additional treatment. On June 19, it was determined that Ortiz was not the intended victim. Moreover, the intended victim was Sixto David Fernandez. The crime was arranged by Sixto’s cousin, Gomez Vasquez. In July 2019, he was released from Massachusetts General Hospital.
Body Measurements
This baseball player is 6 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 95 kg. In addition, he has a pair of dark brown eyes with black hair colour.
David Ortiz – Social Media
On his Instagram ‘@davidortiz’ there are over 2.4 million followers. Likewise, there are over 1.5 million followers on his Twitter page ‘@davidortiz.’ And, there are over 2.1 million followers on his Facebook page.