Padres superstar Fernando Tatis, Jr. received an 80-game suspension on Friday for violating Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Agreement. The Associated Press reports the 80-game suspension -- which is standard for a first offense -- is for the performance-enhancing drug Clostebol.
The Padres released the following statement after the news of the suspension came down.
"We were surprised and extremely disappointed to learn today that Fernando Tatis Jr. tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance in violation of Major League Baseball's Joint Prevention and Treatment Program and subsequently received an 80-game suspension without pay. We fully support the Program and are hopeful that Fernando will learn from this experience."
Tatis, 23, will need to be activated from the injured list to start serving his 80-game suspension and he'll also be ineligible to participate in the playoffs, should the Padres make it. The Padres have 48 games remaining this season, including Friday night, so this suspension will wipe out a decent chunk of the 2023 season, too.
Tatis is on the second year of a 14-year, $340 million deal.
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In 130 games last season, Tatis hit .282/.364/.611 (165 OPS+) with 31 doubles, 42 home runs, 97 RBI, 99 runs, 25 steals and 6.6 WAR. He finished third in NL MVP voting after finishing fourth in 2020. When on the field, he's been one of the best players in baseball, but he's had serious injury issues, most notably his shoulder last season and then the wrist this season, which he fractured in a motorcycle accident. Now he'll be missing 80 games due to a PED violation.
The Padres enter Friday 63-51, which is good enough for a one-game lead over the Brewers for third and final NL wild-card spot. They recently made a splash in acquiring Juan Soto, Josh Bell, Josh Hader and Brandon Drury in front of the trade deadline. They've now won two straight after a five-game losing streak.
CBS Sports will have more on this breaking news story soon
