Major League Baseball has handed down a significant 80-game suspension to free agent outfielder Max Kepler after he tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance. The league announced the ban on Friday, casting a shadow over the veteran player's search for a new team ahead of the 2026 season.
The Suspension and Its Cause
The suspension stems from a positive test for epitrenbolone, a metabolite of the prohibited anabolic steroid trenbolone. This substance is explicitly banned under MLB's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. The penalty is effective immediately and will be enforced if the 32-year-old, who turns 33 next month, signs a contract with any club during the 2026 campaign.
In a formal statement, MLB confirmed the suspension was issued following a violation of its drug policy, which is jointly administered with the Major League Baseball Players Association. The league did not disclose further specifics regarding the test or indicate whether Kepler plans to appeal the decision.
Kepler's Career and the Standard Penalty
Max Kepler, a native of Berlin who holds the MLB career record for home runs by a German-born player, is an 11-year major league veteran. He spent the first decade of his career with the Minnesota Twins before joining the Philadelphia Phillies for the 2025 season. Known for his left-handed power and reliable defence, he was a fixture in the Twins' outfield and a key contributor to their division-winning teams in 2019 and 2020.
As a free agent, Kepler was not under contract at the time of the announcement but remains subject to the league's drug programme. An 80-game suspension is the standard penalty for a first offence involving performance-enhancing substances under MLB's policy. Players suspended under these rules are ineligible for regular-season and postseason games and do not receive pay for the duration of the ban.
History of the Banned Substance
Epitrenbolone has featured in several high-profile anti-doping cases across professional sports. In 2018, heavyweight boxer Manuel Charr was suspended after a positive test for the substance derailed a world title defence. Furthermore, the US Anti-Doping Agency pursued a case involving a 90-year-old American cyclist who was stripped of a masters world record in 2020 due to epitrenbolone.
This suspension represents a major setback for Kepler as he navigates free agency. It places a significant hurdle before any team considering signing the experienced outfielder for the upcoming season, effectively sidelining him for half of the 2026 campaign should he secure a deal.
