David Ortiz says he is open to the idea of an international draft but is wary of its implementation before receiving significant input from players past and present.

While speaking with ESPN on Wednesday, Ortiz said the draft proposed by Major League Baseball, which has become a flashpoint as the league and the MLB Players Association try to strike a deal that would end MLB's lockout of players, needs a long runway for implementation.

"The system in the Dominican [Republic] is not ready to have a draft next year," Ortiz said. "The Dominican is not the U.S. You can't snap a finger and everything lines up to operate the right way. We've got a new president who's trying to improve things. We need to do this slowly."

MLB has proposed a draft system that would begin in 2024.