Free agent outfielder Max Kepler has been suspended for 80 games after testing positive for a banned performance-enhancing substance, Major League Baseball announced on Friday. The suspension stems from a positive test for epitrenbolone, a metabolite of the prohibited steroid trenbolone, under MLB's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.
The ban takes effect immediately and would apply if Kepler signs with a team during the 2026 season. Kepler, who turns 33 next month, is an 11-year major league veteran who spent a decade with the Minnesota Twins before joining the Philadelphia Phillies last season. As a free agent, he was not under contract at the time of the announcement but remains subject to the league's drug program.
In a statement, MLB said the suspension was issued following a violation of its jointly administered drug policy with the Major League Baseball Players Association. The league did not provide further details about the circumstances of the test or whether Kepler intends to appeal.
Epitrenbolone has been linked to past anti-doping cases across professional sports, including a 2018 suspension of heavyweight boxer Manuel Charr and a 2020 US Anti-Doping Agency case involving a 90-year-old cyclist. Kepler, a native of Berlin who holds the MLB career record for home runs by a German-born player, debuted with the Twins in 2015 and was a key contributor to their postseason teams in 2019 and 2020.
An 80-game suspension is the standard penalty for a first offense under MLB's drug program involving performance-enhancing substances. Players suspended under the policy are ineligible to participate in regular-season games or the postseason during the suspension period and do not receive pay.
