Red Sox starter Rick Porcello is a hardliner when it comes to performance enhancing drug use in baseball. He has, in the past, expressed support for harsher penalties for those who test positive. In 2016, Porcello said, “I’m all in favor for a much, much more severe punishment or a lifetime ban.”
Teammate Steven Wright tested positive for Growth Hormone Releasing Peptide 2 (GHRP-2) on Wednesday, resulting in an 80-game suspension. Wright said in a statement, “Although I do not dispute the validity of the test, I was shocked as I have nver intentionally ingested anything for performance-enhancing purposes.”
Porcello still thinks PED users should receive harsher penalties, MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo reports. “It doesn’t change. I feel the same way that I felt in the past,” Porcello said.
Porcello also said Wright owes his Red Sox teammates an explanation for testing positive. Thus far, Wright has not addressed the team as a whole. It is not known yet if that will actually happen.
Wright, a knuckleballer, was limited to 53 2/3 innings last season due to injuries as well as a 15-game suspension under MLB’s domestic violence policy. When he did pitch, he was effective, posting a 2.68 ERA in four starts and 16 appearances out of the bullpen.
