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Members of the baseball community were shocked to learn ahead of the weekend that San Diego Padres All-Star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. received an 80-game suspension without pay for violating MLB’s performance-enhancing drug policy.
Former New York Yankees superstar shortstop Alex Rodriguez is quite familiar with such a punishment. As Jenna Lemoncelli noted for the New York Post, Rodriguez famously served a 162-game suspension in 2014 after he admitted to using PEDs while with the Texas Rangers. He spoke with Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay during the alternate ESPN broadcast of Sunday’s prime-time matchup between the Bronx Bombers and Boston Red Sox that Boston won 3-0 about Tatis’ ban.
“I wasn’t angry. I was heartbroken because to make a mistake at 22 or 23 years old that’s going to affect you for maybe 60 years,” A-Rod said of Tatis. “I made that mistake. I was more in my late 30s, and it was out of desperation to get back on the field and play.”
Tatis, who said in a statement that he “inadvertently” took the banned substance, didn’t played this season while recovering from surgery he required in March to repair a fractured wrist. The 23-year-old now won’t be available until next year.
“I was hoping a lot of these young kids learn from my debacle and my mistakes,” Rodriguez added during his comments. “I have gone to the lowest ground; I have gone to ground zero.”
Rodriguez said he is “always available to help” but explained he won’t directly reach out to Tatis.
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