Back to the Milwaukee Brewers Newsfeed

Cleveland veteran Marlon Byrd takes 162-game ban

By Tom Withers Associated Press, Associated Press

Marlon Byrd's second strike with performance-enhancing drugs cost him a full season — and his career.

The Indians veteran outfielder was suspended 162 games without pay by Major League Baseball on Wednesday after testing positive for Ipamorelin, a growth hormone releasing peptide.

It's Byrd's second violation of Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. Shortly after he was released in 2012 by Boston, Byrd served a 50-game suspension for testing positive for Tamoxifen, a medication used by body builders but also to treat breast cancer.

In 2014, MLB increased its penalty for a second offense from 100 games to a full season.