LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Low-level Braves minor league catcher Orrin Sears was suspended 50 games after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. Sears hit .247 with just one home run, seven walks and 22 strikeouts in 81 at-bats last season for the Braves' Gulf Coast rookie-league affiliate.

The 22-year-old Arizona native tested positive for metabolites of Methandienone, a substance in violation of the minor league drug prevention and treatment program. Sears will serve the suspension without pay at the start of the 2014 season.