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Boston slugger Ortiz wants one-year doping bans

| From afp.com

Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz wants to see Major League Baseball players who test positive for performance-enhancing drugs to serve a one-year ban.

The Dominican Republic star better known to Red Sox supporters as "Big Papi" said Monday on his first day at pre-season workouts that he thinks players are clean because of the testing program.

"I think you clean up the game by the testing," Ortiz said. "You test positive, you're going to be out. Period."

But Ortiz wants players to be tested "three or four times a year, that's it," and said he does not think the threat of having players appear before US lawmakers in hearings will solve the doping problem.

His comments came a week after New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez admitted using performance-enhancing drugs from 2001-2003 as a member of the Texas Rangers.

Ortiz praised "A-Rod" for coming clean but said the revelation that baseball's richest player was a dope cheat was another bitter blow to a sport already reeling from doping revelations and allegations against top stars.

"The A-Rod situation, it was a little bit tough for the game," Ortiz said. "Talking about the best player all the way around. At the same time, people have to give the guy credit because he came out with what he said at the point of his career where he had done it all."

Ortiz, who hit a diminished 23 home runs in an injury-marred 2008 campaign, said his surgically repaired left wrist is fully healed.

"I'm feeling fine right now," he said. "I have no problem swinging."