MLB News: Brewers Catcher Handed 80-Game Suspension For Positive Drug Test

The Milwaukee Brewers will have to wait before Pedro Severino can officially suit up for them. This was after the league suspended the 28-year-old for 80 games after he reportedly tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug, Clomiphene.

According to NBC Sports, Severino tested positive for the said drug – a women’s fertility drug used by some athletes to counter the side effects of steroid use.

As a result of the suspension, the seven-year major league veteran will lose roughly half of his $1.9 million salary. He later apologized to his teammates and fans for the incident.

“Since late 2020, my wife and I had been trying to start a family unsuccessfully,” Severino said in a statement. “When we returned to the Dominican Republic after the 2021 season, we sought medical assistance to determine why we had not succeeded. One of the doctors I consulted with prescribed me with a medication to treat infertility issues. Unfortunately, I now know that the medication contained Clomiphene. I accept responsibility for this mistake and have decided not to challenge my suspension.”

Severino batted .435 with two homers and nine RBIs in eight spring training games. He was supposed to serve as backup to Omar Narvaez. The position is the same one vacated by Manny Pina who signed with the Atlanta Braves.

With Severino’s suspension, manager Craig Counsell will have to turn to other catchers on the Brewers’ roster. That list includes Mario Feliciano and Brett Sullivan. Feliciano has one game of MLB experience and Sullivan has never played in the majors.

However, that is subject to change. No less than President of baseball operations David Stearns said the Brewers are looking at possible catching options from outside the organization.

“This time of year, this timeframe of a couple of days before opening day, is not ideal to be looking for a specific team need, but we’re already actively engaged in conversations,” Stearns said. “We’ll see if anything comes of that in the next 24-48 hours, and if not, we have confidence in what we have internally.”