Mariners lefty Rollins suspended 80 games

Mariners No. 26 prospect David Rollins, acquired in the Rule 5 Draft from Houston, will miss 80 games this year after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug.

The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball said Rollins received an 80-game suspension without pay after testing positive for Stanozolol, a performance-enhancing substance, in violation of Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. The suspension will be effective for the first 80 games of the 2015 Major League regular season.

Rollins, 25, spent all of last season in Double-A with the Corpus Christi Hooks but joined the Mariners in December in the Rule 5 Draft. He's currently on Seattle's 40-man roster, so his positive test is in violation of MLB's drug program rather than the Minor League program.

The Mariners and general manager Jack Zduriencik released a statement following the announcement:

"The Seattle Mariners are disappointed that David Rollins has violated the terms of Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. Our organization fully supports the Program and its efforts to eliminate performance-enhancing substances from our game."

"Having spoken at length with David, I know that he is truly remorseful for his error in judgement," Zduriencik said. "We will continue to work with him to get past this situation."

Rollins would have either had to make the Mariners' Opening Day roster or be returned to Houston. Last year in the Texas League, he went 3-4 with a 3.81 ERA in 27 outings, including a dozen starts, while striking out 77 in 78 innings. He reached Triple-A for one start in 2013, a year in which he went 9-8 with a 3.89 ERA in 30 appearances over three levels. The 6-foot-1 lefty debuted in 2011 after the Blue Jays drafted him in the 24th round of the 2011 Draft out of San Jacinto Community College in Texas.

He's been sharp at Spring Training this year, with seven strikeouts, one earned run and no walks in eight innings over seven games for Seattle.

Stanozolol is a synthetic anabolic steroid derived from testosterone that is sometimes prescribed by veterinarians to encourage muscle growth, red blood cell production, bone density and to stimulate the appetite of weakened animals.