Mariners’ Santiago banned 80 games for positive drug test
Jul 29, 2021, 5:24 AM | Updated: 5:47 pm
NEW YORK (AP) — Turns out Héctor Santiago was using more than sticky stuff.
The Seattle Mariners pitcher was suspended for 80 games Thursday by Major League Baseball following a positive test for external testosterone, exactly one month after he was banned for 10 games when he became the first player penalized under the sport’s crackdown on grip-enhancing substances.
While the sticky substance penalty was with pay, the suspension under MLB’s drug program will cost him about half his $700,000 major league salary.
A 33-year-old left-hander, Santiago is 1-1 with a 3.42 ERA in 13 relief appearances this season. He is a 10-year big league veteran, going 48-51 with a 4.12 ERA and six saves for the Chicago White Sox (2011-13, 2018-19), Los Angeles Angeles (2014-16), Minnesota Twins (2016-17), New York Mets (2019) and the Mariners.
Santiago was the fourth player suspended this year under the major league drug program after Miami pitcher Paul Campbell, Colorado third baseman Colton Welker and San Francisco pitcher Daniel Santos.
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