Hiroshima Carp slugger Xavier Batista received a six-month suspension on Tuesday from Nippon Professional Baseball after testing positive for clomiphene, a non-steroidal fertility medicine, that is classified by the World Anti-Doping Agency as an “S4” violation, involving hormone or metabolic modulators. Clomiphene can be used to suppress the side effects of anabolic steroids.
During that span, from Sept. 2 to March 2, Batista cannot use team facilities or play in Carp practice or other games, suggesting he may be headed home to the Dominican Republic and a prolonged stay at the Carp academy.
Batista did not dispute the result of the tests but said he had not intentionally taken the drug.
This season, Orix Buffaloes first baseman Joey Meneses was suspended one year for using the steroid stanozolol. The shortened ban handed to Batista reflects the difference of the drugs they tested positive for. Clomiphene had not previously been detected in NPB.
Batista is the seventh player found to have violated doping rules in NPB.
As the customary day off, Monday is typically a slow day around NPB, and though the Orix Buffaloes and Lotte Marines played a makeup game, their offenses took the last eight innings off.
Pacific League
Buffaloes 2, Marines 2, 12 innings
At Zozo Marine Stadium, Lotte’s Leonys Martin hit a two-run home run in the first inning, giving him one every 13.4 at-bats in his so-far brief NPB career. Orix tied it in the second on three singles and an error by Lotte shortstop Yudai Fujioka.
The two teams combined to put nine runners on base over the final eight innings and the game was called after the maximum four extra innings and declared a tie.
News
Romero suffering from knee inflammation
Orix Buffaloes slugger Stefen Romero was diagnosed with inflammation in his right knee at a hospital in Chiba on Sunday. He felt pain in the knee running the bases on Sunday, but manager Norifumi Nishimura said he didn’t expect Romero to be sidelined for even 10 days — the number days he would be forced off the active roster if he were deactivated.
