The sad saga of former top prospect Jesus Montero continues.
The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball announced on Thursday that Montero, who is currently in the Toronto Blue Jays farm system, has been suspended for 50 games without pay after testing positive for dimethylbutylamine (DMBA), per Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times. He will serve the ban at the beginning of next season.
Jesus Montero suspended 50 games pic.twitter.com/t7T8CVTomW
— Ryan Divish (@RyanDivish) September 29, 2016
Montero, now 26, was supposed to be the next great thing when he rose up through the New York Yankees organization as a teenager. He was then traded to the Seattle Mariners back in 2012 as a centerpiece of the Michael Pineda deal. But Montero failed to meet expectations as a Mariner, largely due to weight issues and dessert violence.
The Venezuelan was finally designated for assignment by Seattle in March 2016 and was claimed off waivers by Toronto and promptly assigned to the minor leagues. Montero had actually been batting a respectable .317/.349/.438 for AAA Buffalo this season. But this latest ban marks his second career one for PEDs (he previously served a 50-game suspension in 2013 for his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal), and it’s difficult to imagine Montero getting another shot in the big leagues as a result.
Image via Luis Torres on YouTube
H/T Rotoworld
