San Francisco Giants pitching prospect Logan Webb has been suspended 80 games without pay for testing positive for dehydrochlormethyltestosterone (DHCMT), a performance-enhancing substance, the league announced Wednesday.
The suspension begins immediately.
Webb is on the team’s 40-man roster but was pitching for Double-A Richmond in the Eastern League.
The 22-year-old right-hander is 1-2 on the season in five starts. He has a 2.00 ERA, giving up six earned runs in 27 innings and striking out 31.
MLB.com lists him as the No. 2 pitching prospect in the Giants’ system.
Webb issued a statement of denial, shared via Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area:
“For the past month and a half I have tried endlessly to find the answer to why the M4 metabolite was found in my urine sample,” Webb wrote. “I have done research, I have talked to people who know a lot more than I do, and I have sent in an endless amount of supplements and products for testing that I have used over the past couple years. Unfortunately, none of those things have helped me find the answer, and the time for me to find the reason that this has happened has run out.
“I know in my heart that something someday will be put into the world to prove my innocence. That being said, I do not disagree with MLB’s policy, and respect the drug testing system that has been put in place. I love this game and respect it too much to ever cheat it. I am heartbroken over this and I am not sure why this is happening to me, but in life some things happen for a reason and it is my job now to find that reason.”