Braves pitching prospect Billy Bullock has been suspended 50 games following a second violation of the minor league drug prevention and treatment program for a “drug of abuse.”
Bullock was Minnesota’s second-round pick in 2009 out of the University of Florida, but the Twins traded him to the Braves for the ability to keep Rule 5 pick Scott Diamond in the minors instead of the big-league roster in 2011.
Bullock throws in the mid-90s and has impressive strikeout totals at every level, totaling 283 in 218 career innings, but he’s also walked 6.0 batters per nine frames and was a mess between Double-A and Triple-A this year.
Diamond, meanwhile, has developed into a middle-of-the-rotation starter for the Twins with a 3.82 ERA in 212 career innings in the majors.
