Red Sox: David Ortiz aids Dominican Republic in relief of Hurricane Irma

Former Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz is now working in a relief role as he attempts to aid the Dominican Republic as they recover from Hurricane Irma.

David Ortiz is calling upon Red Sox Nation and anyone else who can help to provide financial help as the Dominican Republic recovers from Hurricane Irma. Ortiz is selling Dominican pride t-shirts and parts of the proceeds go towards his native country’s hurricane relief.

The t-shirts can be seen here:

Ortiz’s tweet also provides a link to his personal site where the t-shirts can be purchased. The former Red Sox slugger has taken it upon himself to lead the charge amongst professional athletes to aid the Dominican Republic. Many professional athletes have been very vocal about their support of the various countries that have been destroyed by the hurricanes and earthquakes.

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Fellow Boston athlete, Patriots wide-out Julian Edelman, has been trying to aid Mexico after they suffered great destruction due to a massive earthquake.

Many baseball players including Yadier Molina, Francisco Lindor, Carlos Beltran and Carlos Correa have also joined in the relief efforts. Baseball specifically has been strongly affected by the natural disasters because of the MLB’s large latino population. Molina, Lindor, Beltran, and Correa have focused on their native Puerto Rico just as Ortiz has focused on the D.R.

Ortiz’s site doesn’t specifically state what percentage of the proceeds from his t-shirt sales will go towards the relief fund. The shirts are listed at $29.99.

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Hopefully, Ortiz’s efforts prove to be very effective because the Dominican Republic may need more help in the near future. Last week, Dominican Republic officials released statements urging their people to leave certain parts of the country and that fisherman should not venture out on trips because Hurricane Maria may hit the country as well.