Free agent third baseman and former Mets minor league player Brandon Brown was suspended for 50 games for violating baseball's minor league drug program and he will start his suspension if he signs with another team.
According to the Associated Press, Brown was banned for a positive test that showed metabolites of Stanozolol and the 25-year-old will have to wait to start his suspension, as he was released in March by the Mets. He played for Savannah of the Class A South Atlantic League and hit .222 with five home runs and 34 RBIs. He is the 18th suspended under the minor league program this year.
Justin Blackmon was suspended by the NFL for four games for violating the league's substance abuse policy, according to ESPN.com. Due to a clause in his contract he could be cut by the team, but so far the Jaguars have not gone down that road.
"It's very disappointing," general manager Dave Caldwell said on a conference call with reporters. "We understand that this isn't all going to be an upward trend and we're going to have setbacks. To be honest with you, things like this are frustrating because it's an avoidable situation. That's what's real concerning and frustrating. At the end of the day, we're going to have 53 players on our team on opening day and we're just moving forward and we're not slowing down."
