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Left-Handed Pitcher Nik Turley Suspended 80 Games

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According to Adam Berry from MLB.com, left-handed pitcher Nik Turley has been suspended for 80 games, which will begin at the start of the 2018 season. Turley tested positive for Ipamorelin, which is considered a performance enhancing drug under MLB’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.

Turley was picked up off waivers from the Minnesota Twins in November. The 28-year-old made his big league debut in 2017 with the Twins, making three starts and seven relief appearances. He had a 11.21 ERA and a 2.15 WHIP in 17.2 innings.

Turley was not expected to make the Opening Day roster this year, instead serving as bullpen depth in Indianapolis after pitching well in Triple-A last year. He is out of options, but it was possible he could have been DFA’d to open up a roster spot before the season. Montana DuRapau was also supposed to pitching out of the bullpen for Indianapolis this season, but he received a 50-game suspension last week. The longer suspension for Turley is due to him being on the 40-man roster and DuRapau failing for a drug of abuse.

This suspension opens up a spot on the 40-man roster, which was full.

 

John Dreker
John Dreker
John started working at Pirates Prospects in 2009, but his connection to the Pittsburgh Pirates started exactly 100 years earlier when Dots Miller debuted for the 1909 World Series champions. John was born in Kearny, NJ, two blocks from the house where Dots Miller grew up. From that hometown hero connection came a love of Pirates history, as well as the sport of baseball. When he didn't make it as a lefty pitcher with an 80+ MPH fastball and a slider that needed work, John turned to covering the game, eventually focusing in on the prospects side, where his interest was pushed by the big league team being below .500 for so long. John has covered the minors in some form since the 2002 season, and leads the draft and international coverage on Pirates Prospects. He writes daily on Pittsburgh Baseball History, when he's not covering the entire system daily throughout the entire year on Pirates Prospects.

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