Florida Marlins infielder Jon Fulton, right, falls into dugout after chasing a foul ball during the sixth inning of a spring training baseball game against the Washington Nationals on Thursday, March 9, 2006, in Viera, Fla. Rushing to help is Marlins' Mike Jacobs, left. The Marlins won 5-4.
(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
Marlins' troubled prospect suspended
JUPITER, Fla. --Troubled Florida Marlins pitching prospect Jeff Allison, who returned to the mound last season following a near-fatal drug overdose, has been suspended for violating club policy.
The team disclosed the suspension in a one-sentence statement Thursday but declined further comment.
A heroin overdose, a failed drug test for marijuana and an addiction to the powerful painkiller OxyContin led Allison to miss the 2004 season. He spent time in rehab, then returned to make 17 starts last season for Class A Greensboro, where he went 5-4 with a 4.18 ERA.
Allison, 21, was slated to begin this season at Class A Jupiter in the Florida State League.
The hard-throwing right-hander was the Marlins' first-round draft pick in 2003 out of high school in Peabody, Mass., and signed for $1.85 million. He has collected less than half that amount after his contract was restructured.
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