PEORIA, Ariz. — Former Padres outfielder Abraham Almonte, now with the Cleveland Indians, has received an 80-game suspension without pay after testing positive for Boldenone, a performance-enhancing substance in violation of Major League Baseball's drug policy. The suspension, which will be effective at the start of the regular season, was announced Friday afternoon, just hours after news emerged that another ex-Padres outfielder, Will Venable, would join the Indians.
In their lone trade at the July 31 deadline last year, the Padres sent Almonte, then a reserve outfielder, to Cleveland in exchange for left-handed reliever Marc Rzepczynski. Until Friday, the deal had looked like a win for the Indians; Almonte hit .