KC Royals: Twins Ervin Santana Gets 80-Day Suspension

Major-league baseball slapped former KC Royals pitcher Ervin Santana with an 80-game suspension after the 32-year-old starting pitcher tested positive for the anabolic steroid Stanozolol.

In a statement released on the Twins’ website, Santana said in part:

"“I serve as a role model for many kids in my home country [Dominican Republic] who dream of playing at the highest level. I would never put baseball, my family, or my country in a position where its integrity is jeopardized. I preach hard work, and don’t believe in short cuts. I am very disappointed that I tested positive for a performance enhancing drug. I am frustrated that I can’t pinpoint how the substance in question entered my body. I would never knowingly take anything illegal to enhance my performance. What I can guarantee is I never knowingly took anything illegal to enhance my performance. That’s just not me, never has ben and never will.”"

The suspension is a serious blow to the Minnesota Twins hopes of pulling off a surprise season. Ervin Santana was slated to be the no. 2 pitcher in the Minnesota rotation behind ace Phil Hughes, similar to the role Santana played in 2013 for the Kansas City Royals behind James Shields.

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The KC Royals even considered bringing Santana back to Kansas City during the winter, but decided on Edinson Volquez instead.

Right now, that looks like a good decision by KC Royals general manager Dayton Moore. The team has pretty much dodged a bullet that would have left the Kansas City Royals with a hole in their rotation for nearly three months of the 2015 season.

Santana enjoyed a strong 2013 for the KC Royals, with a 3.24 ERA in 211.0 inning pitched and a 9-10 season record. He formed a strong one-two punch at the top of the Kansas City Royals rotation with ace James Shields, and helped the team win 86 games—which was the team’s first winning record in 10 years.

Ervin Santana played eight years for the Los Angeles Angels before a trade to Kansas City following the 2012 season that sent minor-league reliever Brandon Sisk to Los Angeles.

Santana was in the last year of his contract and had suffered an awful 5.16 ERA in 2012. The move was viewed as a salary dump, with the Royals getting a strong performance from Santana in 2013.

After leaving Kansas City, Santana signed a 1-year, $14.1 million deal with Atlanta. After freeing himself from the franchise tag the Royals placed on him after 2013, Ervin Santana inked a 4-year, $54 million contract with the Minnesota Twins.

Funny how almost no steriod user ever admits his guilt when he is caught. Yet, it’s hard to imagine how a strong anabolic steroid like Stanozolol could have gotten into Ervin Santana’s system by accident.

Thankfully, Santana’s PED use isn’t the Kansas City Royals problem.

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