Robinson Cano has accepted the 80-game suspension Major League Baseball has handed down on him for performance-enhancing drug use, but his explanation for why he tested positive makes little sense.
Cano said in a statement that he tested positive for Furosemide, which he claims he was given by a licensed doctor in the Dominican Republic to “treat a medical ailment.” He noted that Furosemide is not a performance-enhancing drug and that he did not realize it was on MLB’s banned substance list.
Cano statement pic.twitter.com/BEyAkRC0io
— T.J. Quinn (@TJQuinnESPN) May 15, 2018
ESPN investigative reporter T.J. Quinn provided some more information about Cano’s suspension, and it seems to indicate the All-Star second baseman has a big hole in his story. According to Quinn, a player cannot automatically be suspended for using Furosemide, which is a diuretic. Furosemide is commonly used to mask PED use, but MLB still has to prove the player used the substance to mask something else before a suspension is handed down.
IMPORTANT ON CANO: players are NOT automatically suspended for using diuretics. The suspension means MLB was able to prove he was using it to mask a drug. Cano tested positive before the season, appealed and dropped the appeal. https://t.co/3l47Mkya46
— T.J. Quinn (@TJQuinnESPN) May 15, 2018
I don’t know what the original drug was and the source I spoke to said MLB doesn’t, either. Not sure how they proved intent, but evidently they proved it well enough to convince Cano to drop his appeal. https://t.co/BxN0juiLmq
— T.J. Quinn (@TJQuinnESPN) May 15, 2018
Cano says he took it from a doctor and didn’t realize what it was. But drug policy says MLB has to prove intent to mask, which they apparently did. The statement doesn’t hold up to much scrutiny. https://t.co/ZuvCuOP2Kw
— T.J. Quinn (@TJQuinnESPN) May 15, 2018
As Quinn noted, Cano has decided to drop his appeal. If he is telling the truth, how would MLB be able to present a strong case that he used Furosemide to mask some sort of performance-enhancing drug use?
Cano’s suspension will be up in mid-August, but he has also been ruled ineligible for the postseason should the Mariners qualify. It makes sense that he has decided to drop his appeal given the injury he suffered over the weekend.
