New York (AFP) - Major League Baseball issued an 85-game suspension to free agent pitcher Carlos Martinez on Thursday for violating the league's domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy.
The ban, retroactive to June 19, requires Martinez to participate in a confidential and comprehensive evaluation and treatment program supervised by the policy board before he can be reinstated.
The 30-year-old Dominican right-hander last pitched in the major leagues for St.Louis last year.
Details of his violation were not revealed.It was the fourth-longest ban issued under the policy since it was created in 2015 under a joint agreement between MLB and its players union.
Martinez had also been suspended for 80 games in May after testing positive for performance-enhancing substances under minor-league baseball's drug program.
He had signed minor-league deals with San Francisco and Boston, being released from both.
Martinez played for the Cardinals from 2013-2021 and was named an All-Star in 2015 and 2017.He has an MLB career record of 62-52 with a 3.74 earned-run average and 927 strikeouts.
