Rick Porcello says Steven Wright owes team explanation for positive drug test

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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.

Phils’ Hoskins tears knee, expected to miss significant time

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CLEARWATER, Fla. — Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins needs surgery for a torn ACL after injuring his left knee Thursday fielding a grounder in a spring training game and is expected to miss a significant amount of time.

The Phillies did not say when Hoskins would have the surgery or exactly how long the slugging first baseman might be sidelined.

Hoskins hit 30 homers with 79 RBIs last season for the reigning National League champions.

He was backing up to play a chopper on Thursday when the ball popped out of his glove. Sooner after, he fell to the ground and began clutching his left knee. Teammates gathered around him before he was taken off of the field.

Hoskins, a free agent at the end of the season who turned 30 last week, hit six homers in Philadelphia’s playoff run last season. The Phillies lost to the Houston Astros in the World Series.

The injury was another blow for the Phillies, who will be without top pitching prospect Andrew Painter for another few weeks because of a sprained ligament in his right elbow. And slugger Bryce Harper isn’t expected back until around the All-Star break after undergoing Tommy John surgery in November.