Last updated on .From the section Baseball

David Ortiz helped the Boston Red Sox win a first World Series title in 86 years in 2004

Former Boston Red Sox star David Ortiz is "able to sit up as well as take some steps" as he continues to recover from surgery after being shot in the back.

The three-time World Series champion was shot in the Dominican Republic on Sunday and remains in an intensive care unit at Massachusetts General Hospital.

"His condition is guarded and he will remain in the ICU for the coming days," the 43-year-old's wife, Tiffany, said.

She added Ortiz is "making good progress towards recovery".

Surgeons in the Dominican Republic operated for six hours to repair his wounds before Ortiz, who ended his 20-year Major League Baseball career in 2016, was flown to Boston once he was in a stable condition on Monday before having further surgery.

Dominican authorities say Ortiz was the target of an orchestrated plot to kill him.

At a news conference on Wednesday afternoon, authorities said a group was offered 400,000 Dominican pesos (around £6,300) to kill Ortiz.

Five people involved in the attack, including the alleged gunman who shot Ortiz at close range, have been arrested and the handgun used has been recovered. Authorities added that the motive has yet to been determined.

A designated hitter and first baseman, Ortiz helped Boston win a first World Series title in 86 years in 2004 before further triumphs in 2007 and 2013.