Jacksonville's Jennings suspended
The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball announced that Florida Marlins' Minor League pitcher Dan Jennings received a 50-game suspension after testing positive for Methylhexaneamine, a performance-enhancing substance.
The suspension of Jennings, who is currently with Double-A Jacksonville of the Southern League, is effective immediately.
Methylhexaneamine is a substance originally intended to be used as a nasal decongestant but has gained popularity as a recreational drug which reportedly gives users an adrenaline rush. Side effects include nausea and stroke. The drug was recently linked to several Jamaican track stars in 2009.
Jennings, a 6-foot-3 left-hander, is the 65th Minor League to be suspended in 2010 and is the latest in a string of bans handed out by MLB this month. Twenty-six Minor Leaguers have been suspended since July 15 alone.
The 23-year-old was Florida's ninth-round pick out of Nebraska in the 2008 Draft, signing for $145,000 and debuting later that summer with Class A Short-Season Jamestown. He climbed the system quickly in '09, moving from Class A Greensboro to Class A Advanced Jupiter and Double-A Jacksonville, finishing a combined 1-2 with six saves and a 2.15 ERA in 45 relief outings.
The Berkeley, Calif., native had appeared in 37 games with the Suns this season, going 4-2 with a 2.56 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 52 2/3 frames.
Former Major League infielder Pedro Lopez and former fifth-round pick Cesar Nicolas were among four Minor Leaguers suspended Tuesday for using performance-enhancing substances. The bans come a week after Commissioner Bud Selig announced new blood testing policies in the Minors aimed at eliminating the use of human growth hormone or HGH.
Danny Wild is an editor for MLB.com.