Nationals catching prospect Adrian Nieto, who was Washington’s fifth-round pick in 2008, has been suspended 50 games for two banned substances named Oxandrolone and Metabolite.
His suspension will kick in once the season starts and Nieto will likely serve it while at high Single-A.
Baseball America tabbed Nieto as “the best switch-hitting catching prospect in the country” coming out of high school and he got $376,000 to sign with the Nationals, but in two seasons as a pro he’s hit just .210 with two homers in 110 games.
He has a blog set up on MLB.com, but Nieto either never posted an entry or the archives have been scrubbed clean.