
The Minnesota Twins were dealt a blow just days for their season opener when Major League Baseball on Friday handed pitcher Ervin Santana an 80-game suspension without pay after testing positive for the performance-enhancing drug Stanozolol.
The right-hander’s suspension will begin at the start of the regular season next week, leaving the Twins without the projected No. 2 starter in their rotation behind Phil Hughes for nearly half of the 162-game schedule.
The 32-year-old Santana joined the Twins during the offseason after winning 14 games for the Atlanta Braves last season. This spring, he posted a 3-1 record with a 1.89 ERA in five exhibition starts for Minnesota.
Santana pitched for the Kansas City Royals in 2013 and was 9-10 with a 3.24 ERA after starting his career with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. In eight seasons with the Angels, Santana won at least 16 games three times (2006, ’08, ’10). His career record is 119-100 with a 4.17 ERA in 299 games, including 296 starts.