The Miami Marlins open a four-game weekend series against the St. Louis Cardinals with heavy playoff implications on Thursday night in Miami, and will do so with second baseman Dee Gordon back in the lineup after serving his 80-game suspension for a positive PED test in April.
Dee Gordon set to return to Marlins after serving 80-game suspension
Miami (55-46) leads St. Louis (54-47) by one game for the second wild card spot in the National League.
Gordon was suspended on April 29 by Major League Baseball for testing positive for exogenous Testosterone and Clostebol, both performance-enhancing drugs.
The Marlins, who were 10-11 at the time of the suspension, went 45-35 in Gordon's absence, and open play Thursday in the second wild card position in the National League, with a one-game lead over the Cardinals and 1½ games over the New York Mets.
“He will be welcomed back into the clubhouse,” Marlins president David Samson said Wednesday, per Craig Davis of the Miami Sun-Sentinel. “It’s important that Dee asks for that forgiveness, which he has. He’ll receive that, and he’s got to work and continue to work to get himself back in with his teammates and back in with the fans.”
Gordon was a dynamic player in 2014-2015, an All-Star in both seasons. After hitting .289/.326/.378 with a league-leading 64 steals and 12 triples in 2014 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Gordon had a breakout year in Miami in 2015. He hit .333/.359/.418, leading the league in steals (58), hits (205) and batting average.
This season, Gordon was off to a slow start, hitting just .266/.289/.340 with six steals in 21 games before his suspension.
Miami's leadoff hitters other than Gordon this season have done quite well in his absence, hitting .324/.396/.420, with time split at the top of the order mostly between outfielder Ichiro Suzuki (31 starts), second baseman Derek Dietrich (22 starts) and catcher J.T. Realmuto (21 starts).
“It will be be nice to get Dee back and get that guy that you know you have that continuity in your lineup. I kind of like that,” manager Don Mattingly said, per Davis.
“We’re not going to forget the rest of the players who got us these 80 games,” Samson said, per Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald. “He asked the players to hang in there while he was away and they’ve done that, more than done that. It’s been a long 80 days for everyone.”
Gordon was 9-for-35 (.257) with a walk and three steals in nine games on a minor league rehab assignment with Triple-A New Orleans.
Under the current MLB Joint Drug Program, any player suspended for a performance-enhancing substance is ineligible for the postseason. So Gordon won’t be able to suit up for the Marlins if they make the playoffs, but with 61 games remaining in the regular season he can sure help increase their chances of getting there.
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