Jeremy Jeffress Suspended 100 Games

Over the last few years the Milwaukee Brewers have begun to develop into a threat in the National League. They're now a team that is a legitimate contender to win their division and possibly even the NL pennant, and a lot of the credit should go to the organization's ability to develop young talent. They've produced players like Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun and Yovani Gallardo as part of a solid young core for the organization, and they have more players waiting for their shot in the minors.

One of those players is pitcher Jeremy Jeffress, who some consider to be the best pitching prospect in the team's farm system. The 2006 first-round pick (18th overall) has run into some trouble in his career, however, particularly with marijuana. Jeffress has already been suspended once for testing positive for "a drug of abuse," which he later admitted was weed, and it looks like he just can't give the ganja up.

He's tested positive for "a drug of abuse" yet again, and now he's going to miss the next 100 games.

Jeffress, who was 2-1 with a 2.18 ERA for Class A Brevard County since being sent down from AA Huntsville, will not be able to pitch until 2010. His agent, Josh Kusnick, told the Milwaukee paper and reporter Tom Haudricourt that his client will enter a rehab program.

"All I'll say is it was not a performance-enhancing drug. We all know the issue Jeremy has had in the past. He obviously has a very sensitive issue he has to overcome," Kusnick told the Milwaukee paper.

"This is all about Jeremy now. This is a problem that goes beyond his career. It's more important to get the person fixed. He wants to have a healthy and productive life, much less baseball."

Jeffress' agent also said that Jeremy will enter a rehab program to help him overcome what seems to be a marijuana addiction.

For Jeffress' sake I hope he realizes while serving this suspension that playing baseball will do a lot more for him in life than hitting the bong can ever do. After all, he only has one strike left. Another positive test and he's banned from professional baseball for life.