(AP)
The downward spiral of the Phillies continued today when the team announced that Freddy Galvis would be suspended for 50 games by the MLB after testing positive for a banned substance.
Galvis, who was already on the DL and wearing a back brace due to a pars fracture in his back, tested positive for a metabolite of Clostebol, a substance banned in the league’s collective bargaining agreement. His suspension is expected to take effect immediately, despite his already being on the DL.
Via team statement, Galvis had this to say about news of the suspension:
“A trace amount of a banned substance–80 parts in a trillion–was detected in my urine sample. I am extremely disappointed in what has transpired. I cannot understand how even this tiny particle of a banned substance got into my body. I have not and never would knowingly use anything illegal to enhance my performance. I have always tried to follow the teams strength and conditioning methods, listen to the trainers, work out hard and eat right. Unfortunately, the rules are the rules and I will be suspended.
“I’d like to apologize to all my fans, especially here in Philadelphia and back home in Venezeula, to my teammates and to the Phillies organization. I am looking forward to putting this behind me, rehabilitating my back and returning to the Phillies as soon as possible to try to help them win another World Series.”
Though there’s a chance Galvis would’ve missed 50 games with the injury he suffered against the Dodgers on June 6, this is still a disappointing piece of news.
Galvis, who had wowed his coaches, teammates and fans with spectacular defense, brought an energy to this club. Along with his incredibly agile fielding, Galvis had a nack for coming up with big hits in key situations. Despite missing the last two weeks, Galvis is still sixth among Major League rookies in RBI, despite his .226 batting average.
Ruben Amaro met with media shortly after hearing about Galvis’s suspension.
“Freddy is in the training room doing some treatment on his back. I spoke with him. He’s disappointed,” said Ruben Amaro. “It’s disappointing but in these situations we fully support the program and [major league baseball’s] decision and at the same time we support the player and we just want him to get healthy and get back on the field for us.”
Amaro maintained that the health of Galvis is still the team’s chief concern.
“The most important thing is to get him healthy again,” said Amaro. “We believe in the kid–I believe in him–and I think he’s still got a great future for us moving forward.”
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