Phillies center fielder Johan Rojas has officially been handed an 80-game suspension, Major League Baseball announced on Monday.
Rojas, 25, was first reported to be receiving a suspension two weeks ago as he reported to the Dominican Republic camp for the World Baseball Classic.
In the time since the announcement, Rojas has continued to participate in Spring Training action for the Phillies. Displaying fine defense in the outfield, Rojas continued his struggles at the plate, going 4-for-24 with one extra base hit, three stolen bases, and eight strikeouts over 10 games.
Now, in the span of 24 hours, the Dominican Republic has been eliminated from the World Baseball Classic, and Rojas has been eliminated from the World Series.
The fast and nimble outfielder he is, Rojas reportedly tested positive for boldenone. Boldenone is, per the United States Anti-Doping Agency, an anabolic androgenic steroid that has become a common performance-enhancing drug. Most commonly used in racehorses and even illegal in that case nowadays, bodybuilders utilize it for muscle growth and performance enhancement.
Watching over the course of the offseason as the Phillies changed the look of the outfield by adding Adolis Garcia, preparing to promote Justin Crawford, and releasing friend Nick Castellanos, Rojas was likely attempting to increase his own bulk and add some additional power to his swing and arm. Regardless of his knowledge, however, Rojas ended up utilizing an illicit substance to do so, just like teammate Jose Alvarado and former teammate Max Kepler.
Following the announcement, the Phillies released the following statement:
“The Phillies fully support Major League Baseball’s Joint Prevention and Treatment Program and are disappointed to hear today’s news of Johan’s violation.”
Major League Baseball suspensions do include ticketed Spring Training action. Rojas may continue to get work in at Spring Training at the Phillies’ discretion, but he cannot appear in a game. Once the regular season begins, however, Rojas will be suspended without pay. As a ballplayer with career earnings of $1.6 million, a half of a season’s salary (likely in the ballpark of $400,000) is a steep price to pay for a young player.
Rojas’ 80-game suspension will expire ahead of the Phillies’ June 25 contest against the Washington Nationals. Should the Phillies choose to do so, Rojas can rejoin the squad on that day. The outfielder will, however, be ineligible for postseason action.
