Why Red Sox legend isn’t convinced Boston will try to trade for Shohei Ohtani

Shohei Ohtani would certainly help transform any MLB team — including the Red Sox — but one Boston legend isn’t convinced they’ll go after the two-way star.

Ohtani is eligible for free agency after the 2023 season, but the Angels may look to trade him by the Aug. 1 deadline so they don’t end up losing him for nothing should he decide to sign elsewhere. The Yankees reportedly are “the most motivated” to try and trade for Ohtani, but it’s not question he’d help the Red Sox both in terms of pitching and giving them a power bat.

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If you ask David Ortiz, though, he’s not quite sure the Red Sox acquiring someone like Ohtani is a reality.

“The reality is that you’re talking about the best player on earth,” Ortiz said during an appearance on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” on Thursday morning. “And to be able to get Shohei, I mean — you know that we are rebuilding.

“... The reality is that to get Shohei, whoever decides to get him is going to have to give away a lot. And the Red Sox right now, we are trying to rebuild the farm,” Ortiz added. “We have some good candidates coming up from the farm, and that’s something that I don’t know the front office has discussed that.”

“Wherever Shohei goes, he’s definitely going to help, without a doubt,” he continued. “This guy is on another level. I played baseball in the majors for almost 20 years and I’ve never seen anything like that. I call him ‘Superman.’ This guy’s capable of doing everything.”

Throughout chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom’s tenure in Boston, he hasn’t splurged to acquire a superstar at the deadline. And someone like Ohtani — who leads MLB with 32 home runs and has 132 strikeouts across 17 starts — could require a haul that includes prospects that the Red Sox see as part of their long-term future.

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Someone of Ohtani’s caliber doesn’t come around often, and while he certainly could help the Red Sox offensively and defensively, Ortiz doesn’t sound like someone who believes the 29-year-old will be wearing a Red Sox uniform after the Aug. 1 trade deadline concludes.