Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday afternoon that Angels outfielder Josh Hamilton had been summoned to New York City to meet with Major League Baseball officials concerning a “disciplinary issue.”
There was immediate speculation from various corners of the internet that it probably had something to do with his well-documented battle with drug addiction, and now that sadly looks to be true.
CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman is hearing from sources that Hamilton had a relapse “a couple months back” that “involved at least cocaine.” Heyman says the 33-year-old slugger confessed to MLB officials that he used. There’s no word of a failed test.
Heyman suspects that Hamilton will be put into a rehab program as a first-time offender. His prior issues with drugs happened before he was on a major league roster, so he could avoid a suspension.
Hamilton was already due to miss the first month or two of the 2015 regular season while recovering from right shoulder surgery. Anaheim owes him a total of $90.2 million over the next three years.
