OAKLAND (CBS SF) – Oakland Athletics outfielder Ramon Laureano will miss the rest of the 2021 season after violating Major League Baseball’s policy on performance enhancing substances.
“The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball announced Friday that Oakland Athletics outfielder Ramón Laureano has received an 80-game suspension without pay after testing positive for Nandrolone, a performance-enhancing substance in violation of Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program,” the league announced Friday.
Officials said the suspension would be effective immediately. With 53 games left in the regular season for the A’s, Laureano’s suspension will continue into next year.
Ahead of Friday’s announcement, Laureano had a .246 average, hit 14 home runs and stole 12 bases this season.
Following the league’s decision, the team issued a statement which said, “The A’s were disappointed to learn of this suspension. We fully support MLB’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program and we will welcome Ramón back after the discipline has been served.”
In a statement released by the Major League Baseball Players Association, Laureano apologized to the team and said he would have never knowingly ingested a banned substance.
The Major League Baseball Players Association issued the following statement from Ramón Laureano: pic.twitter.com/j7aLbnceIs
— MLBPA Communications (@MLBPA_News) August 6, 2021
“I’d like to apologize for the distraction that this might cause my teammates, Billy Bean, David Forst and the entire Oakland organization, community and fan base,” Laureano said.
“I am devastated. Anyone who truly knows me as a person knows how much I love the game and that I would never intentionally do something like this,” he went on to say.
Entering Friday’s games, the A’s (61-48) are 4 games behind the AL West-leading Houston Astros. The A’s begin a three-game series against the Texas Rangers on Friday night.
