Braves' Jurickson Profar banned 162 games for second PED violation

Atlanta Braves outfielder/designated hitter Jurickson Profar faces a 162-game suspension after a second positive test for performance-enhancing drugs, MLB confirmed Tuesday night.

Profar, 33, will forfeit his entire $15 million salary for the 2026 season and will be ineligible for the postseason and for this month's World Baseball Classic, where the Curacao native was set to play for the Netherlands.

The league said Profar tested positive for Exogenous Testosterone and its metabolites, which are banned under MLB's joint drug prevention and treatment program. The Major League Baseball Players Association plans to challenge the suspension, The Athletic reported.

Profar becomes the sixth player to receive a full-season PED ban since Major League Baseball increased the penalty for two-time offenders in 2014, per ESPN.

A first-time All-Star with the San Diego Padres in 2024, Profar signed a three-year, $42 million contract with Atlanta in January 2025. He batted .245 with 14 homers and 43 RBIs in 80 games in his first season with the Braves after serving an 80-game suspension from March 31 to July 1.

Profar's initial suspension came after testing positive for human chorionic gonadotropin, a hormone produced during pregnancy that can boost testosterone production.

Profar underwent sports hernia surgery in the offseason and was expected to move from left field to DH this season.

Profar was the No. 1 prospect in baseball when he debuted with the Texas Rangers at age 19 in 2012. He is a career .245 hitter with 125 homers and 487 RBIs in 1,199 games with the Rangers (2012-13, 2016-18), then-Oakland A's (2019), Padres (2020-24), Colorado Rockies (2023) and Braves.

The oft-injured Profar has played more than 150 games in a season only twice, missing the entire 2014 and 2015 campaigns because of a shoulder injury.

--Field Level Media