Oakland's David Castillo was suspended for 60 games, the penalty for a third violation. All the others were suspended for 15 games, the ban given to first offenders.

Seven of the 38 positives came from the Chicago Cubs organization, five each from the Los Angeles Angels, Oakland and Texas, and four from San Diego. There were two from Colorado, and one each from St. Louis and the Chicago White Sox.

''The release speaks for itself,'' Oakland assistant general manager David Forst said. ''The program is in place and it's working.''

The commissioner's office said one suspension was the result of offseason testing and the rest stemmed from 925 tests conducted during spring training.

Last year, about 1.7 percent of the minor league tests for steroids were positive, baseball spokesman Pat Courtney said. Courtney did not know whether some teams had more players than others tested during spring training.

Players with minor league contracts, who are not covered by a collective bargaining agreement, are tested for more banned substances. Amphetamines are on the minor league banned list but are not covered by the major league policy.

Ten of the players suspended have been released.

Of the five Angels prospects, Alexander Francisco had been released and the other four - William Collazo, Francisco Cordova, Baltazar Lopez, and Ryan Leahy - are not with the Salt Lake Stingers, Los Angeles' AAA affiliate.