LOS ANGELES — The news that Miami Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon, one of Major League Baseball's most unique and best-liked players, had received an 80-game suspension landed like a pile of bricks late Thursday night. Into the wee hours of Friday morning, shock intermingled with dismay and, in some cases, anger. Perhaps the strongest reaction came from Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander, who tweeted that the continuing presence of performance-enhancing drugs "is killing me."
In the wake of Gordon's bombshell, Verlander may have been the strongest voice, but he certainly wasn't alone in his sentiment.
"It's disappointing," Padres manager Andy Green said early Friday night.