News about MLB's long-anticipated Biogenesis suspensions continues to trickle out at a snail's pace, but we now know some concrete info that impacts the Mets. The most surprising bit came when Ken Rosenthal tweeted that among the players who'd copped to 50-game suspensions was Jordany Valdespin.
To this point, Valdepsin had not been mentioned in any Biogenesis rumors, so Rosenthal's news came out of nowhere (the same could be said for most players mentioned in his tweet). Since being sent down to AAA-Las Vegas, Valdespin has batted a very PCL .466/.537/.759 in 58 at bats, while also getting into hot water multiple times—most recently while assisting 51's manager Wally Backman in some fisticuffsmanship. Valdespin's performance at the major league level should undercut the theory that PEDs automatically turn a player into a superstar, or any good at baseball, really (the occasional Papelbon-crushing homer notwithstanding).
More disappointing, though not unexpected, was Rosenthal's confirmation that Mets prospect Cesar Puello would also accept a 50-game suspension. Puello had been named in the initial leak about the Biogenesis case months ago. Puello had batted .328/.405/.550 for Binghamton this season, with 16 homers and 73 RBIs, making him one of the few quality bats in a system that remains pitching heavy. The suspension means the Mets will be without his services at any level until the 2014 season.
In former Mets prospect news, Rosenthal also mentioned that the erstwhile Teenage Hitting Machine Fernando Martinez (now in the Yankees' system) would also accept a 50-game suspension.