L.J. Mazzilli Suspended 50 Games

This is old news — about a week old, in fact — but in case you hadn’t heard, Mets minor league prospect L.J. Mazzilli has been suspended 50 games for a second positive test for a drug of abuse.

The 24-year-old Mazzilli — the son of former MLB player, manager, and Met Lee Mazzilli — enjoyed a successful stint in the Arizona Fall League, hitting .306 with a homer and seven RBI in 49 at-bats. This came after hitting a combined .301 with 11 homers, 79 RBI, and 14 steals in 505 at-bats split primarily between two A-ball stops with Savannah and St. Lucie (he also played one game for AAA Las Vegas). The UConn graduate is a right-handed hitter who mostly plays second base; whether he reaches the big leagues depends mainly on his bat. Starting off the 2015 season on the bench for the first fifty games will obviously stunt his progress.

I have no idea what “drug of abuse” Mazzilli was caught with; I understand he suffers from ADHD but don’t know if the drug he used is related to that. Whatever it is, I wish him the best and hope he can kick the problem and find peace.

There is a good profile of Mazzilli from last spring in The New York Times, and another published in the Norwich Bulletin.