Jhoulys Chacin of the Colorado Rockies pitches in the seventh inning against the Cincinnati Reds during game two of a doubleheader at Great American Ball Park on Sept. 4, 2022 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
Staff Reports
World Baseball Network
Former Major League Baseball pitcher Jhoulys Chacin has been suspended for 12 games by the Liga Venezolana Beisbol Profesional for failing a drug test during the 2023-24 season.
According to a statement from the LVBP, Chacin failed a test in January.
“On Jan. 10, 2024, the righthander for the Leones del Caracas was subject to an anti-doping control test, in accordance with the protocols and procedures provided for in the Players Agreement of the LVBP. On Feb. 7, 2024, notification of the analysis of the test carried out by the UCLA Olympic Analytical Laboratory in the United States of America. Said report showed the adverse result due to a substance prohibited by the PALVBP,” the LVBP’s statement, translated from Spanish, said.
The league’s statement said that Chacin would be suspended for 12 games, and that because he admitted to using the substance, the suspension was reduced from a 20-game ban.
Chacin had a good season for Caracas, going 2-2 in six starts, throwing 26.2 innings and allowing 23 hits, nine earned runs, seven walks and notching 14 strikeouts with a 3.04 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. He was a reinforcement for the Tiburones de La Guaira at the Caribbean Series, where he was scratched from a Feb. 4 start against Puerto Rico after feeling soreness in his pitching arm while warming up.
In a statement, Chacin said the positive test was due to a weight-loss drug.
“Since I started my career in 2005 I have tried to play baseball the right way and following all the rules, including those of the anti-doping programs. Unfortunately, and to my surprise, a medication I was taking to control my weight was what caused the violation of the LVBP Anti-Doping Program,” Chacin wrote in Spanish in a two-page statement he released on X.
The native of Maracaibo, Venezuela, has played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball, pitching for the Colorado Rockies, Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Angels, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres, Milwaukee Brewers, and Boston Red Sox. In 338 appearances, Chacin is 85-91 with a 4.18 ERA anda. 1.338 WHIP over 1435.2 innings pitched.
Chacin last appeared in MLB with the Colorado Rockies in 2022, making 35 appearances out of the bullpen and throwing 47.1 innings with a 7.61 ERA.