On the verge of returning to motion after wrist surgical procedure that had stored him out all season, Fernando Tatis Jr., the 23-year-old star shortstop and outfielder of the San Diego Padres, has been suspended for 80 video games for a violation of Main League Baseball’s drug prevention and therapy program.
Within the announcement of the suspension, M.L.B. specified that Tatis had examined constructive for Clostebol, a performance-enhancing substance that may be a artificial anabolic-androgenic steroid. Because the Padres have fewer than 80 video games remaining this season, Tatis’s yr is over earlier than it began.
For San Diego, the suspension is a large blow to a workforce that made a splash on the buying and selling deadline by buying a number of new gamers, together with Juan Soto, a 23-year-old famous person outfielder. Whereas the workforce has itself in place for a wild-card spot even with out Tatis, the return of their younger star — who the workforce signed to a 14-year $340 million contract final yr — had been anticipated so as to add one more jolt of their hopes of contending for the primary World Sequence title in franchise historical past.
With the 80-game suspension, Tatis immediately turns into among the many most outstanding gamers to face a penalty throughout M.L.B.’s testing period. Different stars to have confronted suspensions included Manny Ramirez in 2009 (50 video games) and 2011 (100 video games), Miguel Tejada in 2013 (105 video games) and Alex Rodriguez in 2014 (162 video games).
Extra just lately, Robinson Canó served an 80-game suspension for a violation of the coverage in 2018 after which was banned for a full yr in 2020.
Tatis, whose father was additionally a significant leaguer, was an All-Star final season when he led the Nationwide League with 42 residence runs. He injured his wrist in a motorbike accident over the low season, and when it didn’t heal correctly he received surgical procedure on it throughout spring coaching. On the time, he was anticipated to be out for 3 months or extra.
On a rehab project within the minors this week, Tatis had extensively been anticipated to return to the Padres subsequent week.