What We Know About David Ortiz's Split From His Wife Of 25 Years

Legendary Red Sox slugger David Ortiz may soon reach the pinnacle of his baseball career recognition, as he has been nominated to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Ortiz and Alex Rodriguez are the only first-time nominees for 2020, according to MLB "I know there's a lot of guys who have been on the ballot for a while," he told the outlet, adding, "It's gonna be my first time on it, so hopefully things go well." Ortiz, who is popularly known as Big Papi, also realized that "the opportunity to be part of that elite group, it's something that definitely makes you very excited."

Ortiz has an illustrious baseball career, scoring both on and off the field. Oritz retired in 2016 after 20 seasons playing in the major leagues, playing for the Red Sox for 14 of those seasons, per NJ.co. The 10-time All-star player was also honored for his philanthropy when he was tapped for the Roberto Clemente Award in 2011 which rewards an MLB player for his community involvement and character. In fact, he and his wife, Tiffany Ortiz, co-founded the David Ortiz Children's Fund, an organization that has paid for more than 1,200 pediatric heart surgeries. Talk about an athlete with a big heart!

While Ortiz's career may be thriving, it seems the same can't be said for his personal life. On the heels of his Hall of Fame nomination, Big Papi's wife made a stunning announcement on social media. 

Tiffany Ortiz and David "Big Papi" Ortiz are splitting up. The former baseball star's wife made the announcement on Instagram on December 13. She shared a pic of her and Señor Papi sitting at a table in their formal best. "Over the past 25 years, David and I have shared a beautiful adventure in love and partnership," she wrote in her caption. The couple met in 1996 and wed in 2002, per People. "We have made the decision to go into a new phase of our life journey together, not as a couple, but as friends and co-parents to our amazing children," she revealed. David and Tiffany had Alexandra and D'Angelo, while Jessica is David's daughter from a previous relationship.

This is not the first time the couple has called it quits. In 2013, David told WEEI.com and MLB.com (via MLB). "There are some situations in life that work out for a period of time, and at some point they don't work out anymore, and you have to move on." However, the couple decided to reconcile in 2014. "We separated for a while," she told Track (via Boston Herald), but evidently the split wasn't permanent. She added a reason for why they kissed and made up: "... We missed each other terribly."