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Eduardo Nunez: Dominican players 'embarrassed' by Ortiz shooting

Brace Hemmelgarn / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Although Eduardo Nunez is happy to hear that his friend and compatriot David Ortiz is expected to make a full recovery, the Boston Red Sox infielder is "embarrassed" by the recent shooting of Big Papi in the Dominican Republic, according to ESPN's Marly Rivera.

"Just thinking about the fact that this happened to him in the Dominican Republic, it is unimaginable," Nunez told Rivera on Wednesday. "For us, as Dominican players, it's a very bad image. It is an international shame.

"We feel very embarrassed about what happened to him because he is a legend from our homeland, and this happened to him in our homeland."

Nunez, who never played on the same team as Ortiz but developed a close relationship due to their Dominican ties, checked in with the former Red Sox slugger by phone on Tuesday.

"It was just a brief greeting, but it felt good to have the opportunity to talk to him," Nunez said.

Ortiz was shot outside a club in Santo Domingo on Sunday and continues to recover at Massachusetts General Hospital following a second surgery, according to a statement released Thursday by the Red Sox on behalf of his wife.

Six suspects, including the alleged gunman, have been detained since the shooting, Dominican authorities said Wednesday, according to The Associated Press.

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