White Sox catcher Castillo suspended 80 games for PED use

Chicago White Sox catcher Welington Castillo has been suspended 80 games without pay after testing positive for Erythropoietin, a performance-enhancing substance, Major League Baseball announced Thursday.

"The positive test resulted from an extremely poor decision that I, and I alone, made," Castillo said in a statement released by the Major League Baseball Players Association. "I take full responsibility for my conduct. I have let many people down, including my family, my teammates, the White Sox organization and its fans, and from my heart, I apologize."

Castillo, who signed a two-year, $15-million contract with the White Sox in December, got off to a strong start in 2018, hitting .267/.309/.466 (111 wRC+) with six home runs while accruing 0.7 WAR in 33 games. In his absence, the White Sox will install Omar Narvaez as their primary catcher, with newly promoted Alfredo Gonzalez serving as his backup.

In a statement, White Sox general manager Rick Hahn said the club was "saddened and disappointed" to learn of Castillo's suspension, and said the team "fully supports Major League Baseball's policy and its efforts to eliminate performance enhancing substances from our game."

"Welington has apologized to the team and his teammates and has taken full responsibility for his actions," Hahn added. "He understands that he has negatively affected the team and has fallen short of the expectations we have of our players."

Castillo's suspension comes less than two weeks after Seattle Mariners star Robinson Cano was handed an 80-game ban for testing positive for Furosemide, a diuretic commonly used as a masking agent to conceal PED use.