Brace for a potential MLB controversy: Braves outfielder Jurickson Profar faces a 162-game suspension for a possible second positive drug test, according to an anonymous league source cited by the Associated Press. The same source noted that the process, first reported by ESPN, is still underway.
Profar plans to ask the players’ association to file a grievance to appeal any discipline to baseball’s independent arbitrator, Martin F. Scheinman, another anonymous source confirmed. Since this would be Profar’s second infraction, any appeal would occur after the suspension is announced.
In 2024, Profar earned an All-Star nod and posted solid numbers. He returned from an 80-game suspension on July 2, 2023, after testing positive for Chorionic Gonadotrophin (hCG), a substance linked to testosterone production. He later issued a statement accepting MLB’s decision while maintaining he would never knowingly take a banned substance.
Profar’s agent, Dan Lozano, did not respond to a request for comment. During spring training, Profar shared that he underwent sports hernia surgery in November, with a six-week recovery window. He has appeared in four spring games this year, accumulating three hits in ten at-bats and driving in three runs.
A Curaçao native, Profar had been slated to participate for the Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic.
If the suspension stands, Profar would be ineligible for postseason play and would forfeit a portion of his $42 million, three-year contract through 2027, including this year’s $15 million salary. He previously lost half of his $12 million salary in 2025 due to the earlier suspension.
Historically, Profar would become the seventh player to receive a 162-game penalty for a second PED violation, joining players such as Jenrry Mejía, Marlon Byrd, Cody Stanley, Francis Martes, Robinson Canó, and J.C. Mejía in this unfortunate category. Mejía remains the only player to receive a lifetime ban, following a third positive test in 2016.
The Braves recently added outfielder Mike Yastrzemski to a two-year, $23 million deal, positioning Profar as the club’s primary designated hitter. If Profar is unavailable, the team could lean on Drake Baldwin—who earned the NL Rookie of the Year honors in 2025—as a potential fill-in, at least when not catching. With Yastrzemski, Michael Harris II, and Ronald Acuña Jr. in the outfield, Eli White could also be considered for DH duties. The club is also down projected shortstop Ha-seong Kim due to a finger injury, with Mauricio Dubon likely stepping in as a utility option and opening week plans to start the season at shortstop.
Profar’s absence could open a door for Dominic Smith, who signed a minor league deal in February, to carve out a larger role in the lineup.
AP Sports Writer Charles Odum contributed to this report.
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