David Ortiz is proving that age is but a number…

The 40-year-old Dominican baseball star, nicknamed “Big Papi,” became the oldest player in Major League Baseball history to hit 30 home runs in a single season in the Boston Red Sox’s 4-3 loss to the the Tampa Bay Rays in 11 innings on Wednesday night.

“It’s hard to lose a game like that at this time,” Ortiz said. “You expect to win that kind of game, especially the stage that we are in now. ”

Ortiz hit the first pitch he saw from starter Matt Andriese in the first inning for a two-run homer.

Ortiz is the only player with 30 homers and 100 RBIs in each of the past four seasons, and he is the first Red Sox player to drive in 100 runs 10 times.

“We need that, we need offense,” Ortiz said. “We’ve had a good offense this year, and that’s what’s keeping us alive, so hopefully it continues.”

Ortiz has 533 home runs, one shy of Jimmie Foxx for 18th on the career list. Ortiz plans to retire at the end of the season.