Robert Carson, Theo Alexander suspended 50 games for positive drug test

LOS ANGELES -- A pair of Dodgers minor league players were suspended for violations of the minor league drug prevention and treatment program, the commissioner's office announced on Tuesday. Left-handed pitcher Robert Carson and outfielder Theo Alexander each were suspended 50 games for a second positive test for a drug of abuse.

Carson, who finished 2014 in Triple-A Albuquerque, was originally a non-roster invitee to spring training, but the Dodgers say he will no longer be in big league camp.

The left-hander was 3-8 with a 5.78 ERA in 47 relief appearances across three levels in the Angels and Dodgers systems in 2014, with 54 strikeouts and 35 walks in 62 innings.

Alexander, 20, was drafted by the Dodgers in the seventh round in 2012. He hit .217/.282/.333 with three home runs in 43 games for rookie-level Ogden in 2014.

Drugs of abuse covers a wide range of substances, including marijuana, cocaine, heroin, ecstasy and others, and could be anything listed on the Code of Federal Regulations Schedule of Controlled Substances.

A first positive test for a drug of abuse results in mandatory evaluation and additional follow up testing in addition to regular random testing and/or testing for reasonable cause. A third positive test results in a 100-game suspension, and a fourth positive test brings lifetime banishment from minor and major league baseball, though a player could be reinstated upon commissioner approval if a treatment program is completed.

There is no random testing for drugs of abuse for players on 40-man major league rosters.

The suspensions for Carson and Alexander will begin once the schedules for Oklahoma City and Ogden, respectively, start.