Major League Baseball suspended 2015 National League batting champion Dee Gordon over performance-enhancing drugs on Friday.
The 80-game suspension follows two failed drug tests during spring training. The Miami Marlins second baseman reportedly popped positive for exogenous testosterone and clostebol.
“Though I did not do so knowingly, I have been informed that test results showed I ingested something that contained prohibited substances,” Gordon maintained in a statement. “The hardest part about this is feeling that I have let down my teammates, the organization and the fans. I have been careful to avoid products that could contain something banned by MLB and the 20+ tests that I have taken and passed throughout my career prove this. I made a mistake and I accept the consequences.”
Gordon dropped his appeal of the suspension after a rare road sweep by the Miami Marlins of his old club, the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Marlins awarded Gordon with a five-year, $50 million deal before last season. He awarded the team a batting champion, hitting .333 with 205 hits and 58 stolen bases—topping the senior circuit in all three categories.
Gordon appears far from the prototypical steroid user. The five-foot-eleven infielder debuted five years ago in the major leagues at 144 pounds. The speedy base stealer now weighs 160. Despite the chemicals, he struggled at the plate this season, batting just .266 and hitting zero home runs.
The suspended second baseman is the son of retired reliever Tom Gordon, the inspiration for Stephen King’s The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon and 1998 MLB leader in saves. The suspension comes in the first season of Barry Bonds’ tenure as a hitting coach.
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