MLB: Four Minor Leaguers Suspended

By Jason Burke | Jul 21, 2016

May 18, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Detailed view of a New York Yankees hat and baseball glove against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

According to an MLB press release, four minor league players have been suspended without pay, effective immediately.

Arizona Diamondbacks Angelo Almonte, New York Yankees Jean Peralta, Chicago White Sox Joselo Pinales and Baltimore Orioles Wally Vrolijk were all suspended late Wednesday, with Almonte, Prealta and Joselo testing positive for Stanozolol, a performance-enhancing substance, while Vrolijk was suspended for Methylhexanamine, a stimulant. The Stanozolol offenders will be out for the next 72 games while Vrolijk will be out for 50.

Interestingly enough, all four players are pitchers, and all four have been playing in the Dominican Summer League.

Almonte, a 22-year-old left-hander from Villa Gonzalez in the Dominican, had been playing for the DSL D-Backs2 squad, compiling a 1-2 record and a 1.67 ERA in seven games (three starts). In his 27 innings, he walked seven and allowed 14 hits for a WHIP of 0.78, while striking out 35. He was originally signed by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2012, and was released by the Phils in December of 2015. The D-Backs signed him to a minor league contract in June, and he was suspended in July.

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Peralta, a 22-year-old righty, was signed for the first time by the Yankees on June 20, and a month later to the day was hit with a 72-game suspension. In his six appearances, Peralta tossed 11.1 innings to the tune of a 3.97 ERA.

Pinales, 21, was originally signed by the Astros and played with their DSL teams in 2013 and 2014 before landing in the Gulf Coast League for the last couple of months of the season. Last season he started in Rookie Ball before getting promoted to short-season A Ball in Tri-Cities, where he held a 2.70 ERA in 6.2 innings. He was released by Houston in Janurary, and the White Sox swooped him up in May. With the DSL White Sox Pinales went 0-2 with a 4.20 ERA in twelve relief appearances.

After being released by the Los Angeles Dodgers in September of last year, the Orioles signed Vrolijk on June 2 of this year and placed him on their DSL Orioles1 team. Out of the bullpen the 21-year-old right-hander made ten appearances, going 2-2 with a 3.05 ERA over 20.2 innings. Control was a big issue for the Oranjestad, Arbua native, as he issued 16 walks to just 12 strikeouts, giving him a walk to strikeout ratio of less than one, which is not terribly common.

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Per ESPN, there have been 61 suspensions this year under the minor league drug testing program, and 13 at the major league level.