Chris Davis suspended 25 games for amphetamine use

Major League Baseball has announced that Chris Davis has been suspended 25 games for testing positive for amphetamines. The suspension includes the postseason, so that means he'll be out for the final 17 games of the season and the first eight games of the postseason.

This news of course comes as a complete shock and is a huge blow to the team as they head towards the playoffs. It's upsetting on a number of levels, but there is no changing it now. This suspension isn't part of the three-strikes-you're-out rule, if you're interested in that. Here is Chris Davis's statement:

I apologize to my teammates, coaches, the Orioles organization and especially the fans. I made a mistake by taking Adderall. I had permission to use it in the past, but do not have a therapeutic use exemption (TUE) this year. I accept my punishment and will begin serving my suspension immediately.

If you go to the link that I put up top, you'll see that 119 players had permission last year to use Adderall, so while Davis was definitely in the wrong to take it without permission, this isn't nearly the same as a steroid suspension and the stigma that goes along with it.

This sucks. This really stinks. The Orioles don't need Davis to win the A.L. East. But they could sure use him in the playoffs. As of right now it would appear that we won't see him back unless the Orioles make the World Series, since the eight-game mark would be reached mid-ALCS. And now we have to watch Kelly Johnson play third base all the time.