Minnesota Twins pitcher Ervin Santana was suspended for 80 games by the MLB on Friday.
The suspension is a result of Santana testing positive for steroids. Santana tested positive for stanozolol, a steroid that’s popular among Olympic athletes and is known to be easily detected in drug tests, according to USA Today. This is Santana’s first year with the Twins. He signed a four-year $55 million contract with the Twins, and will lose $5,901,639 of his $13.5 million salary this year. He will be eligible to return in July.
Santana isn’t the only player who has tested positive for stanozolol. In addition to Santana, Seattle Mariners pitcher David Rollins and Atlanta Braves pitcher Arodys Vizcaino have all tested positive for stanozolol in the last eight days, the Associated Press notes.
"I preach hard work, and don't believe in short cuts," Santana said. "I am very disappointed that I tested positive for a performance enhancing drug. I am frustrated that I can't pinpoint how the substance in question entered my body. I would never knowingly take anything illegal to enhance my performance. Moving forward, I need to be more careful on what I consume in my home country, I will be more vigilant of medications I take so that I don't commit another mistake. Having said that, I believe it is best to move forward and accept the punishment that has been negotiated by MLB and MLBPA for my positive PED test."
He went on to apologize to the Twins, his teammates, family and fans.
Santana signed a one-year contract with the Braves last year. He was 14-10 with a 3.95 ERA with the Braves last year, according to ESPN. In his ten-year career, Santana has a 119-100 record. The success he had with the Braves last year got him the deal with the Twins.
The Twins recalled Aaron Thompson to replace Santana on the roster. Mike Pelfrey will take Santana’s place in the Twins rotation.