DENVER — A third baseman in the Colorado Rockies' minor league system has been suspended for 80 games without pay after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug, according to a release from Major League Baseball.
Colton Welker, 23, currently plays for the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes and is on the Rockies' 40-man roster. He tested positive for Dehydrochlormethyltestosterone, or DHCMT, in violation of Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program, according to the release.
The suspension is effective immediately.
> Watch video above: This is what opening day looked like for the Colorado Rockies.
The Rockies issued the following statement in response to the news Thursday:
"The Colorado Rockies are disappointed to announce that infielder Colton Welker has tested positive for a substance banned under the terms of Major League Baseball’s Drug Prevention and Treatment Program, resulting in his 80-game suspension. The Rockies organization fully supports MLB’s Drug Prevention and Treatment Program and we believe that Colton will learn from this experience."
The Rockies drafted Welker out of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida in the fourth round of the 2016 Draft. Colorado added him to its 40-man roster following the 2020 season, according to MLB.com.
MLB Pipeline ranked Welker the number 11 prospect in the organization.
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