Ortiz and Ramirez tested positive in '03
By Ted Keith, SI.com
Slugging stars David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez, who helped deliver the Boston Red Sox their first world championship in 86 years in 2004, are among the names on the list of more than 100 players to have tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in 2003, according to the New York Times.
The Times, citing lawyers with knowledge of the results, say Ortiz and Ramirez were found on the list which, it was revealed in previous months, also includes Alex Rodriguez and Sammy Sosa.
According to the Times, the lawyers did not reveal which drugs the players tested positive for. Ortiz said "I have no comment" when asked about the matter on Thursday by a Times reporter in Boston.
The list included 104 names of players who tested positive during survey testing, implemented for the 2003 season to determine whether or not baseball needed a full-fledged testing program, which went into effect the next season.
Ramirez, now with the Los Angeles Dodgers, just returned on July 3 from a 50-game suspension for failing a drug test. At the time, he said, "I want to make clear I've passed about 15 drug tests over the past five seasons." Ramirez has long been one of the game's premier hitters, and this season ins batting .327 with 11 home runs and 37 RBIs in 48 games.
Ortiz took a different path to stardom. He had the best year of his career in 2002, hitting .272 with 20 home runs and 75 RBIs, but the Minnesota Twins released him that December. He signed a one-year, $1.25 million deal with the Red Sox then put together a .288 season with 31 home runs and 101 RBIs, the beginning of a five-year stretch in which he had at least 30 home runs and 100 RBIs every season. He has slumped badly this season batting a career-low .224 with 13 home runs and 55 RBIs.
When Sports Illustrated reported in February that Alex Rodriguez had tested positive for steroids in 2003, Ortiz said any player who tested positive should be suspended for an entire season.
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