The Philadelphia Phillies lost another pitcher on their 40-man roster to drug suspension Thursday.
Phillies pitcher Alec Asher was suspended by MLB for 80 games after testing positive for anabolic steroids, the league announced. The drug, dehydrochlormethyltestosterone, was the same substance found in the testing samples of Philadelphia reliever Daniel Stumpf and Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Chris Colabello; both players also received 80-game suspensions. Asher has not yet announced whether he will appeal or accept the MLB’s decision. The Phillies issued a statement to CSN Philly upon being notified of his suspension.
“The Phillies support Major League Baseball’s joint prevention and treatment program and are disappointed to hear today’s news of Alec’s violation,” the team said in a statement.
Dehydrochlormethyltestosterone is an oral steroid first developed in the 1960s that was East Germany’s drug of choice while it ran a state-sponsored doping program for the country’s athletes. It has since been popular among male athletes attempting to gain a physical advantage for its ability to both boost muscle growth and to limit the amount of estrogen released into the body.
Asher joined the Phillies last July via trade. Philadelphia shipped Cole Hamels and Jake Diekman to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Asher, Jerad Eickhoff, Jorge Alfaro, Nick Williams and Jake Thompson. Asher struggled in seven starts for the Phillies last season, closing the year with a 0-6 record and 9.31 ERA after allowing 30 runs in 29 innings.
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While playing for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, Philadelphia’s Triple-A squad, Asher posted a 4-2 record and 2.30 ERA through eight starts this season, reportedly adding a two-seam fastball to his arsenal. He has been on the minor league disabled list since mid-May with a stress fracture in his lower right leg after taking a ground ball to the shin in a pitching appearance for the IronPigs.
According to SportsRac, Asher is the 14th MLB player to face a suspension for PEDs in 2016.
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