David Ortiz is going to have to keep some of his feelings to himself.
The Boston Red Sox slugger should expect a letter from Major League Baseball warning him not to tamper, reports MLB Network's Jon Heyman.
Ortiz recently lobbied for the Red Sox to sign Toronto Blue Jays designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion to replace him upon his retirement at season's end, as well as for the club to acquire right-hander Jose Fernandez from the Miami Marlins.
"The Red Sox know also they need to bring a force in the middle of the lineup (after I retire),'' the 40-year-old Ortiz told reporters July 12. "And sorry, Blue Jays, but who better than Encarnacion to do that?
"(Fernandez) has incredible stuff," Ortiz said about the Marlins ace. "I thought he was gonna end up playing with me this year. I mean, you never know. I want him in my starting rotation. I mean, we need a little bit of help and hopefully that happens at some point, who knows?"
It was reported Thursday the league was looking into Ortiz's comments and that he could be subject to tampering charges similar to the ones executives have been accused of in the past, according to Sportsnet's Jeff Blair.
MLB clearly outlines tampering on page 44 of their rule book:
... there shall be no negotiations or dealings respecting employment, either present or prospective, between any player, coach or manager and any Major or Minor League Club other than the Club with which the player is under contract, or acceptance of terms, or by which the player is reserved or which has the player on its Negotiation List, or between any umpire and any baseball employer other than the baseball employer with which the umpire is under contract, or acceptance of terms, unless the Club or baseball employer with which the person is connected shall have, in writing, expressly authorized such negotiations or dealings prior to their commencement.
The rule doesn't state what the repercussion of continued tampering by Ortiz might be, though a fine or suspension would surely be involved.
The NBA fined rapper Drake - the Toronto Raptors' "Global Ambassador" - $25,000 for what the league called a public recruiting pitch towards superstar Kevin Durant during a 2014 concert.
