A’s Laureano suspended 80 games for PED violation.
No sooner had the A’s acquired a dynamic offensive force in Starling Marte to reinforce their outfield for the stretch run than they’re down another.
That’s because outfielder Ramón Laureano has been suspended for 80 games for violating Major League Baseball’s policy on PEDs. Laureano tested positive for nandrolone, according to a statement from MLB, and will miss the remainder of the regular season. He also will be ineligible for the postseason.
“I think everybody was shocked,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said during his pregame news conference Friday afternoon. “These things aren’t fun, and Ramon’s beloved in our clubhouse. You know we have to abide by the rules and every
body’s knows ’em, and unfortunately, we’re in the position that we are right now.”
The A’s have 52 regularseason games left this season, so any remaining games on Laureano’s suspension would carry into next season.
If the A’s play any games in the 2021 postseason, they would count as part of Laureano’s suspension.
Melvin and general manager David Forst said they had spoken with Laureano. Forst said Laureano “was upset. He feels like he let people down. We all know he wears his heart on his sleeve.”
Laureano issued a statement through the
MLB Players Association, saying, “I would never knowingly ingest any banned substance and put the game that I’ve loved all my life at risk. When I found out that I tested positive for nandrolone, I was shocked. I take great care of my body and have an extremely regimented diet. Based on the minuscule amount that was briefly in my body, I’ve learned that it is likely that it was contamination of something I ingested . ...
“I’d like to apologize for the distraction that this might cause my teammates, (executive) Billy Beane, David Forst, and the entire Oakland organization, community, and fan base . ... I am devastated.”
Laureano is in his fourth season with Oakland, and has played in 88 games this season. He was hitting .246/.317/ .443 with 14 home runs, adding 12 stolen bases.
“It’s still pretty fresh to us. Definitely shocked,” first baseman Matt Olson said about Laureano’s suspension. “This kind of news is never easy, but it is what is and we’ve got to carry on and go try to win a championship.”
In his absence, the A’s once again will have to look at sharing playing time in a corneroutfield spot. Newly acquired Josh Harrison started in left field Friday night against Texas. Other players likely to get starts are Stephen Piscotty, superutilityman Tony Kemp and
Seth Brown, whom the A’s recalled from TripleA Las Vegas on Friday.
The value of having Marte to handle regular duties in center field and in having Mark Canha back from the injured list cannot be overstated.
Losing Laureano’s everyday presence will hurt the A’s at the plate, in the field and on the bases.
This is the third time in the past decade a key Oakland player has been given a lengthy
suspension for PED use. In 2019, it was pitcher Frankie Montas for 80 games. In 2012, pitcher Bartolo Colon was docked 50 games.
Olson said having gone through the Montas suspension doesn’t make dealing with Laureano’s any easier.
“Just caught off guard a little bit, as it was with Frankie a couple of years ago,” Olson said. “We’ll take our time to process. Nothing can be done about it now, so we’ve got to find a way to move on.”
Marte received an 80game suspension for using nandrolone when he played for Pittsburgh in 2017.
Christina Kahrl is The San Francisco Chronicle’s sports editor. Steve Kroner is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: christina.kahrl@sfchronicle.com, skroner@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ChristinaKahrl, @SteveKronerSF