Cleveland Indians: RHP Joe Colon suspended 50 games following second failed drug test

Minor league pitcher Joe Colon is reportedly facing a 50-game suspension following a second failed drug test, Cleveland Indians beat reporter Jordan Bastian tweeted. What exactly Colon was using has not been disclosed as of this writing, just that it is a "drug of abuse."

Colon pitched in 48.2 innings between Double-A and Triple-A for the Indians in 2015 before hitting free agency. He signed a minor-league deal with a non-roster invite to Spring Training earlier this offseason. He will be able to attend Indians Spring Training and theoretically win a spot in the bullpen, but he obviously will not be available for the first 50 games of the regular season.

As of now it appears the Indians do plan to keep him on for a non-roster invite to Spring Training. Being that he is not on the 40-man roster, having him sit for 50 games not impact major league operations, so it cannot hurt to keep him around if he performs well out of Spring Training and could be useful after his suspension is up.

Last season was Colon’s first time in the minors as a full-time relief pitcher and he had one of the better years of his career, including 24 strikeouts in 17.0 pitching for the Triple-A Columbus Clippers.