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Mattingly 'shocked and surprised' by Gordon's suspension

Jim McIsaac / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The scene in the Miami Marlins' clubhouse should've been one of jubilation after they completed a four-game sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday night. The mood quickly soured after the game, though, when news broke of second baseman Dee Gordon's 80-game suspension for PEDs.

"Two different ends of the spectrum for us, as a team," manager Don Mattingly told reporters. "You would expect our guys to be excited, then we get this news."

Mattingly, who also managed Gordon while both were with the Dodgers, acknowledged the news left him "shocked and surprised." While he'll support the 28-year-old, Mattingly's primary focus is on moving his Marlins forward for the next 80 games.

"It's one of those situations, that you know, you love your kids and that's Dee, for me, that's one of mine," the 55-year-old said. "Gonna get a love on him, and love him through this process and help him any way we can.

"But then as a ball club it's a different scene, you know the story is we have to move forward. And that's what happens in professional sports, stuff happens, and you move forward and you gotta find a way to get around it."

Related: Marlins president Samson calls Gordon suspension a 'huge disappointment'

At least one of Gordon's teammates echoed his manager's sentiments.

"I love Dee and we support him," third baseman Martin Prado told Andre C. Fernandez and Manny Navarro of the Miami Herald. "I really have nothing else to say. We had a great series and we played good baseball, the whole team. We have to continue to do that. We have a game tomorrow and we're going to play good baseball against a pretty good team and we want to keep that streak going."

The reigning NL batting champion, Gordon has struggled in 2016, hitting just .266/.289./340. He'll be eligible to return from his suspension some time in July.

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