NEW YORK (AP) — Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Starling Marte has been suspended 80 games by Major League Baseball after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug.
The league said Tuesday that Marte tested positive for the steroid Nandrolone. He will be eligible to return in mid-July.
Marte was an All-Star for the first time in his career in 2016 and moved from left field to center field in the offseason after winning his second Gold Glove. The 28-year-old is hitting .241 with two home runs and seven RBI this season. The Pirates began Tuesday 6-7 through the first two weeks of the 2017 season.
Marte says in a statement that “neglect and lack of knowledge led to this mistake.”
— Starling Marte (@Starlingmart) April 18, 2017
Pirates president Frank Coonelly says he is “disappointed” that “Starling put himself, his teammates and the organization in this position.”
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