David Ortiz Wants 1-Year Suspensions for Positive Steroid Tests

David Ortiz is continuing with an emerging trend in baseball: he has spoken out in favor of year-long suspensions for anyone that tests positive for steroids.

Much like Ozzie Guillenlate last week, Ortiz told the media that he believes big-time suspensions is the best way to curb cheating in baseball.

Of course, no word yet on how this will affect his friendship and WBC bromance with Alex Rodriguez on the Dominican Republic team.

The Red Sox designated hitter says the way to clean up the game is through testing and not by taking players to court. Houston Astros shortstop Miguel Tejada pleaded guilty last Wednesday to misleading Congress about performance-enhancing drug use in baseball.

It's a bold statement, but I tend to agree. Under the current system, anyone who cheats receives a 50-day suspension, and that's utterly meaningless if said player has already been given a new contract. However, the threat of losing a year's worth of salary seems to be a much more effective means of deterring steroids than wasting time trying to navigate the bureaucratically designed legal system.

As for having to team up with Rodriguez, an admitted cheater, I think Papi might be willing to look past the slugger's transgression, at least for the duration of the WBC (although that seems somewhat hypocritical, I suppose). And, in all honesty, given all the randomness A-Rod has spewed over the past weeks, I wouldn't be shocked to hear him come out publicly in favor of the year-long suspensions either.

David Ortiz Wants 1-Year Suspensions for Positive Steroid Tests originally appeared on MLB FanHouse on Mon, 16 Feb 2009 14:45:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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