FILE PHOTO: Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz follows through as he flies out in the eighth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays during their MLB American League East baseball game in Boston, Massachusetts, September 22, 2013. REUTERS/Dominick Reuter
(Reuters) – David Ortiz, a retired Red Sox star, took a few steps on Tuesday in his Boston hospital room after surgery for a gunshot wound he suffered in the Dominican Republic, media reported.
A second suspect was arrested Tuesday evening in connection with the shooting, the Boston Globe and other media reported, citing unnamed sources. It wasn’t known whether the second person was the shooter police were looking for.
“He is stable, awake, and resting comfortably this morning,” Ortiz’s wife, Tiffany Ortiz, said in a statement Tuesday. Ortiz, 43, was expected to remain in the intensive care unit at the hospital for the next few days, she said.
He was shot in the torso on Sunday evening at a nightclub in Santo Domingo, the capital of his native Dominican Republic. His friend Jhoel López, a television host, was also wounded in the shooting.
Police there have arrested two suspects. One was identified as Eddy Vladimir Féliz García, who was beaten by bystanders at the scene.
The second suspect was arrested Tuesday evening. The Globe and other media said the second suspect was not named publicly.
Ortiz underwent a first round of surgery in Santo Domingo on Sunday night before being flown to Boston.
Known as “Big Papi,” Ortiz is still a hero in Boston for his role in three World Series championships and for his motivational remarks in the days after the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.
Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York and additional reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; editing by Matthew Lewis, Larry King