Major League Baseball announced today that free agent outfielder Max Kepler has received an 80-game suspension after testing positive for Epitrenbolone, a performance-enhancing substance, in violation of Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.
Kepler and MLB negotiated a settlement that allows him to serve the suspension even if he’s not on an MLB roster to begin the season, reports Alden González of ESPN. If he remains a free agent, last year’s playing time with Philadelphia would count as a credit towards the suspension. He remains ineligible for the 2026 playoffs.
Kepler, 33 in February, just wrapped up his first season away from the Twins. After years in Minnesota, Kepler became a free agent after the 2024 campaign and signed a one-year, $10MM deal with the Phillies.
His year in Philadelphia wasn’t especially pleasant. He hit 18 home runs but slashed .216/.300/.391 for a wRC+ of 90. Along the way, he expressed some frustration at being shielded from lefties, saying that he thought he had been signed to be an everyday player.
Returning to free agency this winter, he wasn’t going to have a huge amount of earning potential after that down year. On the other hand, the outfield market is fairly weak, apart from Kyle Tucker and Cody Bellinger being the top guys. Beyond those two, Kepler was one of the better options alongside Harrison Bader and Mike Yastrzemski, the latter of whom signed with Atlanta.
This development obviously changes that. Kepler is now not only a 33-year-old coming off a down year, but also one who won’t even be available for the first half of the season. Even if he latches on somewhere, serves his suspension and plays well in the second half, he wouldn’t be eligible for the 2026 postseason.
That’s obviously going to cut into Kepler’s earning power. For clubs looking for outfield help, especially those who won’t pay for guys like Tucker or Bellinger, it could perhaps increase their desire to push for someone like Bader, Miguel Andujar, Austin Hays, Mike Tauchman or other available outfielders.
Photos courtesy of Kyle Ross, Brad Rempel, Imagn Images
Wow
Max:
To the Thunderdome, gulag, and then bye-bye
Took peds and he still had an awful year.
Doesn’t seem like it was working.
Clicked the wrong button on the website.
On the plus side, his hair is thicker and hes able to prolong his private at bats.
PEDs don’t work on their own
SMH
There are quite a few PED experts posting on this thread. I have questions.
Does PED use really shrink your bat size? Raymond Redington said it on The Blacklist, so it must be true.
Of course they don’t. The 8B people agree that you can be a couch potato, take PEDs, and still be a couch potato.
But if you don’t think PEDs help a weight lifter lift more weights, then you need to do more research.
Red has spoken, this is the way.
He stayed healthy, so it did work.
@Ph 2
He’s in MLB, right? Perhaps he wouldn’t be good enough to be an MLB player if he didn’t use them.
See Chris Davis. And, even though nothing came out, see Avi Garcia.
Yeah that was a horrible mistake
Wow
Need to hear from Kepler but as much as I despise PEDs, it doesn’t seem fair that he first has to sign with a team to start the 80 game clock. He and others in a similar position are being penalized greater than those whose contract hasn’t run out. The length of the suspension should start immediately unless appealed in all cases.
As I interpret the article, they’re allowing his time with the Phils as the suspension start point. He’d be available for regular season play on the 81st day if some organization throws him a bone.
Thanks. The article has been updated.
This outcome makes sense. Not clear to me why last season “credit” is mentioned at all. Would he be available sooner if he signs? What does 2025 have to do with anything?
Makes it seem like MLB knew he tested positive and waited to suspend him. It could be that the clock starts from the blood draw. IDK. but that is a long time to get results. I hope the best for him and that he bounces back from this.
The word fair is overrated and overused these days.
Penalties are meant to inflict punishment.
He may not be signing with anyone, having failed the stupid test.
That doesn’t mean the test is stupid, folks.
Another, I typically agree and even argue intent should trigger the punishment, not the results (why should an attempted murderer get less of a sentence than an actual one simply because his/her aim with a gun was bad?) but here he has no job and no income so if it took him until May to get that job, he’d be out more than 80 games. The compromise makes sense
This is Beretta theme song territory.
Don’t go to bed, with no price on your head – No, no, don’t do it.
Don’t do the crime, if you can’t do the time – Yeah, don’t do it.
Tell the Commish, “Up your nose with a rubber hose…” Whoops wait, that was Kaplan’s students…
@Dodgers Fan. All punishments are penalties, but not all penalties are punishments.
The word fair is not overrated or overused. It’s just misunderstood by some people who have an aversion to thinking things through.
We’ll have to agree to disagree. At least I will.
@Dewey: The attempted murderer gets less punishment than a murderer because nobody died.
Dats the name of that tune says Tony Beretta as he throws Kepler into a jail cell.Cue the music as Sammy Davis Jr begins to sing.Great post Another Dodgers Fan brought back some great memories!
Only the olds will get this;)
Sorry meant to post as a reply to Another Dodgers Fan’s Barretta reference!
Well, Willfully Ignorant, narcissistic decisions & actions can have severe & lasting consequences & impacts….Kepler knew this.
SoCalBrave – 100% Concur with your observation.
It’s perfectly fair. A suspension is a supension FROM GAMES. You do the crime, you do the time, simple as that.
I hear Korea is nice
Huh, shame they didn’t work.
That also isnt how they work lol
So they DID work?… Hehehehe.
I guess that dampens his market a bit.
FOFO ⚾
Very interesting, but…
Refer to Rowan and Martin’s laugh-in for the rest of this line
Boy if last year was him on peds then it’s scary how bad he would’ve been without them.
That’s not how PEDs work lol
So they don’t help with performance despite the “P” standing for “Performance”?
Correct. Steroids are not a magic potion that helps you hit a baseball.
You don’t just take PEDs and poof, they work. No. You’re given more reward for your hard work and often have to work harder. If your work ethic sucks, you won’t get anything out of it.
It won’t make you a better pitcher. You might add some velocity and you’ll recover better. That’s about it. If your control sucks, it will still suck. It may even get worse with higher velocity. If he doesn’t work hard outside of games, he won’t get much from PEDs.
Yes. ballplayers take the risk of using them and ruining their careers because they provide no benefits.
@rhandome Nobody said they were. But if you have that skill and hand/eye coordination taking gear helps you recover and stay stronger over a 162 game season. And that is exactly why players risk their careers to take them.
You get cancer in later life. That’s something. Probably heart disease too as your heart strains to maintain a muscle mass that isn’t natural. You can get both of those from PEDs without much work.
Might add some velocity and recover better seems like a decent bit
Don’t take everything so literally. They were just making jokes.
It helps pitchers be able to try new pitch grips because of the smaller balls.
And you are sterile.
I’ve taken a substance that players have been banned for and they do not improve performance in the way we were taught. In my case, I took it for a bad muscle tear and it made me recover faster, but there was no performance improvement. It’s not as if you take steroids and you all of a sudden can hit a ball better. Some definitely make you stronger, but it’s not like Popeye with spinach. Not arguing for or against anything.
What kind of “performance” are you talking about here anyways?
If you’re safe and keep your doses low, they’re actually pretty safe. Ibuprofen and Tylenol are often rated as higher risk medications.
The risk with steroids comes when people think they need more and more. That significantly elevated your testosterone levels and can cause issues. If you’re smart, it’s pretty safe.
That being said, Tren is about as toxic as they come.
False lol
@joshb600 “You might add some velocity and you’ll recover better. That’s about it.”
Most pitchers would kill for more velocity and faster recovery. Thanks for describing the efficacy of PED’s for pitchers.
But not without working towards that goal. I
PEDs will help you add velocity of your training is focused on adding velocity. Your endurance will improve if your training is focused on improving endurance.
They help you get better more efficiently at skills you’re working to improve. The doses players would be taking would also be extremely low as even the minimum doses of testosterone can be unsafe after 8-10 weeks.
If your work ethic is poor, or your diet and especially sleep, PEDs will not help you much. They also increase your risk of injury. Lots of players who use early in their careers often fall off in their 30s due to injury because they break down sooner. You essentially age faster.
And the specific steroids he took according to Lougle is for a urinary issue
No this again. It improves everything depending on what you take and how much you take – it eve can improve eyesight so yes it can improve your ability to hit a baseball. It gives you confidence, mental clarity, it’s just so impactful.
It wouldn’t help you hit a baseball.
It’s not “poof” but you don’t have to work out to get benefits. Youre telling me that Rafael Palmeiro was a big studly dude? No he was not.
A third of the population gets cancer if you live long enough and that is not a statement than can be proven.
Tren is an extremely potent steroid. Lmao
If you don’t train and eat a lot of food with the intent of getting huge, you will not get huge. You still need the work ethic and caloric intake, and training with the intent of getting big. Some drugs are optimized for size vs otherwise is all.
It’s like the folks that take mind-altering drugs and claim it doesn’t alter their minds. My question always is, if it doesn’t alter your mind, why would you spend good money on it?
Of course PEDS work. Nobody is paying serious money and risking suspension for laughs.
Said McGwire and Sosa
Actually there is significant scientific and anecdotal evidence that certain PEDs allow hitters to process information better, which creates the effect of seeing the ball better.
The advantage usually comes from two specific types of substances:
1. Stimulants (The “Greenies” & Adderall)
This is the most direct way PEDs help with “seeing” the ball. Baseball has a long history with amphetamines (traditionally called “greenies”).
Hyper-Focus: Stimulants increase alertness and narrow a player’s focus. This helps a hitter “lock in” on the pitcher’s release point, ignoring the crowd and distractions.
Visual Processing: While they don’t change the eye’s physical lens, they speed up the brain’s ability to process what the eyes see.
Reduced Fatigue: In a 162-game season, eyes get “tired.” Stimulants keep the central nervous system sharp, preventing the “lazy eye” or slow tracking that happens when a player is exhausted.
2. Anabolic Steroids (Wait-Time Advantage)
The link between steroids and “seeing” the ball is actually about physics and timing rather than vision.
Increased Bat Speed: Steroids build explosive muscle fiber. If a hitter has more strength, they can swing the bat faster.
The “Split-Second” Benefit: Because they can swing faster, they don’t have to “commit” to a pitch as early. A “clean” hitter might have to decide to swing when the ball is 30 feet away; a steroid-user with elite bat speed can wait until the ball is 25 feet away.
The Result: That extra split second of tracking the ball makes it appear as though they are seeing it better, because they are gathering more data on the ball’s flight before they have to swing.
@rememberthecoop Which PED’s did you take?
Caffeine does this as well.
Barry’s great batting eye didn’t come from PEDs.
Bf
“They were just…” being ignorant jerks
Crazy talk. PED’s help every muscle in the body – including eyes… Yes, the athlete still has to do the work when juicing; and the reward for doing the work is much much greater. Doubt that? Please tell in what year ahead there are going to be multiple 70hr seasons from players…
No but being so much stronger and having his reflexes enhanced meant he could check his swing successfully more often.
Hank it’s really sad Barry used peds it was blatantly obvious and his statements about the clear and cream were damning to his case. He probably would have been a HOF player without it but he got greedy.
Jaysfansince92
Reduced Fatigue: In a 162-game season, eyes get “tired.”
=====================
This is the one I disagree with. You could probably refine your usage, but you probably need to take your speed close to game time, or you’ll blow yourself out too early.
For example, I wouldn’t expect to pop a pill at noon, and expect to be sharp at 7:00. So I’d probably take it a lot closer to 7:00. But that means that at midnight, you’re probably still high and need a couple of beers to help you sleep.
I expect it would help with a night game following a day game, or to get you over the hump following a 10-game road trip. But I can’t see someone doing that every day for 6 straight months.
I love my caffeine, but it is not the same.
He probably would have been a HOF player without it but he got greedy.
==================
For all the talk about ‘5-tools’, almost no one has them. I don’t remember BB doing anything poorly. He likely would not have gotten it, but he was a legit 500/500 threat
Exactly. I worked at a gym with a bodybuilder who won some regional events and maxed out at 6th in Mr. Olympia in the 80s. As for steroids, he took EVERYTHING. During the McGwire/Sosa years, I asked him what steroids really did.
He said it increased the ability to work harder and recover faster…it didn’t just grow muscles. As for baseball, his opinion was that it improved power (and probably injury recovery) if – and only if – the player was committed to working out. Kepler’s exit velo was up in ’25, and even his sprint speed ticked up a bit. Maybe it helped a little. For a player in defensive decline, his idea was probably to hit more like a corner OF (but didn’t). Time is still undefeated.
Irrelevant if true – Whatever PED Kepler allegedly utilized is on a known “Banned Substance List” list which every MLB / ML Player Association player who has ever signed a contract is acutely aware of –
Kepler made a willfully ignorant decision & will now suffer the appropriate & accepted consequences.
Agreed
But not every player that fails a PED test is trying to gain an advantage on the field. When Jurickson Profar was suspended last season news eventually came out that he took something to try to help him get his wife pregnant cause they were having fertility issues. It had absolutely nothing to do with on field performance and had he not been a dolt and ran it past Braves trainers he might have been given a waiver for it and not gotten suspended. But oh well.
So PEDs dont EP..? Why do players risk their careers to take them then, so they look good in their uniforms?
They help, but you don’t just take them, change nothing and poof, you’re superman. Your control won’t improve and may get worse. Your ability to hit the ball will not improve. You’ll add some feet to your homeruns, and throw a bit faster.
Your benefit will come from recovery day to day, but even then, without optimal diet, sleep, training etc, there won’t be much benefit. You still need to work and if your work ethic is poor, there won’t be much to gain.
Can we all acknowledge there is more than just PEDs that help with recovery and that players have been busted with them numerous times?
Sure didn’t help Barry Bonds
it helped his head to grow, literally
How does he post a 90 wRC+ season with PEDs? Should have talked to Barry to get the special stuff.
Probably because PEDs actually NOTHING to make players better. Most PEDs just make the body heal faster during workouts. Most of the names on the Mitchell Report were no name guys that did not hit 70 homers per year. Bonds and Clemens and the rest were not made great baseball players by PEDs, they were great baseball players already that just tried a shortcut to heal their bodies.
@hiflew
They were great players that should be in the Hall of Fame. Too bad we have a bunch of cry babies as the gatekeepers. Just jealous that they couldn’t compete in little league.
So, how do we bring back PEDs?
If Hiflew keeps repeating the lie enough times it will become truth.
@OleSpaghettiNips
Oh, so much hate! Can’t we all just have a lovefest?
It’s amusing that you used the word feel there. Even you couldn’t make the claim that you were thinking with that comment.
Old York:Spot on.
I am glad there is no limit on the number of people you can mute on this site since there is no limit on the number of idiots in the world at large.
So glad you shared this information. Performance enhancing drugs are not performance enhancers they are just drugs. They don’t do anything but get you high.
They help if you work hard. It’s not a magic pill lol
So it is a magic pill then. Because someone who works just as hard without them won’t see the same results, correct?
The weird premise here seems to be PED use is okay because PED users apparently train harder? What?
@shadowpartner
Interesting, I’ve never seen any people at parties popping steroids or sneaking off to do lines of tren in the bathroom.
Jesse-interesting. You stick with the good stuff huh? I was merely commenting on what hiflew said about how performance enhancing drugs are not performance enhancers. Sorry about your confusion there.
You haven’t been to a Barry Bonds party.
@shadowpartner
Yeah, that is actually my bad. apparently I’m especially bad at reading comprehension today, jeez man, speaking of drugs, apparently i need some caffeine to wake up a little bit.
@stillintalks
Im personally not a fan of using steroids, but I have no problem with anyone that takes them. I’m not going to lie though, if Barry Bonds personally asked me if I wanted to use steroids with him, in this fictitious situation, I would do it, 100%. For some reason I don’t think that’s going to happen though.
And build musculature. They had to do the work but the muscles weren’t natural. That’s where people misconceive the impact of PEDs.
They DO make you stronger, bigger, faster if you do the work. The capacity for work is improved by quicker recovery after lifting.
Correct. The benefits of steroids only will apply if your training, diet, sleep etc is on point. They will not make up for a lack of work ethic. They will not improve your co tact, strikeout rate, walk rate, speed, fielding etc. You’ll be able to swing a little bit harder and throw a bit harder, if you work toward that goal.
Shouldn’t all professional athletes have good training and diet regimen?
Ask Bartolo colon that. Zion Williamson is another one.
They have access to the best stuff. No one can force you beyond your will to get in shape, eat right, sleep right etc.
I have Pablo Sandoval on line 1.
I say Brady Anderson doesn’t hit 50 homers without them
And I say you have no proof other than “I don’t think he would have.”
Hiflew: Absolutely.
@hiflew
Yeah, Bonds, McGwire, and Sosa would’ve still hit all those HRs without PEDs because PEDs don’t make you better.
Like Eric Gagne & Brady Anderson?
Tren burns body fat while allowing you to still throw on muscle. That’s a ridiculously stupid comment by HiFlew. This would be a performance enhancer.
Turning fat into muscle is impossible and not help it works. You burn fat and add muscle. Steroids help but if you aremt working hard, they won’t do much. Your control won’t improve at all.
I am pretty sure your self control will definitely not improve.
As someone who used to work in a gym I recognize a lot of PED rationalization I heard from juice monkeys. “No, bro, it’s totally cool I juice because I put the work in, bro. I’m a machine. Its’ not the drugs but my insane schedule. You should do a cycle. Get jacked. Then when a girl rejects you you can burn down her house in an insane rage, bro.”
Good times.
Because Kepler wasn’t really that great to begin with aside from 2019. He’s mostly been a below average hitter throughout his career. Bonds was on a hall of fame warpath even before he got super jacked to chase records.
“I took PEDs and all I got was 0.1 bWAR”
That’s not how PEDs work lol
Someone isn’t familiar the “I did ___ and all I got was this t-shirt” joke format
Josh is just trying too hard to justify steroid use, he failed to see the humour.
Josh, people understand that PEDs don’t magically move directly into your muscles. The reason I never took them was because I didn’t have the discipline to make them worth the risk.
But if I was a professional athlete, and was hitting the gym 2 hours a day, and was a AAAA player, I think there is a pretty good chance I’d have cheated with PEDs.
That’s not how they work
say it again 🙂
Why? They didn’t work.
Dude didn’t even use some obscure/unknown drug that might’ve skirted testing or given him some deniability and went straight for Tren lol
Gawhd damn so we’re talking straight 90’s Canseco type juice. Almost gotta respect how brazen of a choice that is.
Might be time to hang up the spikes Max.
Now now, lets not rake the man over the coals too much. Maybe he didn’t realize that if you were taking PED’s you still have to workout and lift weights and such? xD
But for real, in this day and age do you really think you’re going to get away with using PED’s? Science is always going to be a step ahead of testing for substances, but man you are in The Show, use some sense, have some pride in what it took to get there (assuming he did so cleanly, which now also comes into question).
He didn’t even try. There’s a guy in every gym in America on this stuff. Been around forever.
Any player caught using PED’s these days just aren’t very smart. Regardless whether they help or not, it tarnishes your whole career. It just isn’t worth it. Kepler will now not make the HOF. Without steroids he probably only hits 16 HR rather then 18 HR. Lol
If he can take something, even an illegal something, and it allows him to get another contract it’s worth it. Even with the suspension he can get league minimum for half a season. Which is a lot of money. If he plays well in the half season he’s got millions more coming his way. Economically it’s a no brainer for someone on the edge of their career. Especially so with his suspension negotiation
That’s probably not going to help his market.
Yikes.
I already thought he was bad with Philadelphia last year, but without PEDs? He would’ve been in AAA.
This exactly
No need to suspend him, if teams no he played that poorly while juicing they certainly won’t want him now
Dunno, the Reds may have just found the left-handed OF bat that fits their budget.
That’s not how it works lmao
Josh… Kepler?
He’s got 9.152 years of service time. About 30 games away from a full pension. Damn.
FAFO good, hope he never hits 10 years service time
tramlou – But I’m sure you root for cheaters like Tatis.
0.848 of a season is 30 games? My math says it’s 137.37 games.
Actually I believe he only needs to spend 20 more days on a major league roster.
9.152 is MLB’s way of notating 9 years plus 152 days of service time. A full year of service is defined as 172 days. So Kepler would be just 20 days away from 10 years of service.
@Armaments216
Fair enough. Thank you for the explanation. That’s like how 4.1 innings is 4 and a third. Got it.
Max Kepler doing his best to show fans overrate the effect steroids have on performance
Retire
The comment section here shows me that none of you know anything about PEDs lmao. They don’t magically make you a better baseball player. It might help your velocity a tad but the most important reward is your recovery between games. It won’t magically improve control or anything. It helps you work out, and recover quicker and far more efficiently. They also do not magically improve your endurance, but you would probably get more out of your endurance training. You don’t just take some juice and you are better lmao.
It can also negatively affect your mental health and stuff, and significantly makes you more prone to injuries.
The fact that it’s Tren is crazy though. It’s extremely potent and can really mess you up.
“They don’t magically make you a better baseball player. It might help your velocity a tad”
Increased velocity that wasn’t there before PEDs. Doesn’t that by definition make you a better baseball player? Letter of the law versus spirit of the law…
Increased velocity is good if you can control it. And you don’t just take PEDs and magically your velocity improves. If you work hard and train with the intent and goal of adding velocity, it will help more.
I creasing velocity can also significantly negatively affect control which may already not be good. The logic that simply throwing faster makes you a better ball player is really unintelligent.
I get it. They don’t make you better. They just increase your performance. That’s totally not exactly the same thing.
Josh clearly juices and doesn’t want to be discredited for anything he’s accomplished.
I’m pretty sure everyone here is kidding
Comment section here shows me you must be great at parties, no sense of humor. Many of these comments were meant as jokes.
Ht
“you must be great at parties”
I can’t help but think that people who say this must go to the lamest parties. I mean, if they are comparing MLBTR comments section to a party…
@jaun personally I’d love to go to a party where everyone was interested in baseball
On
Ok
I would hate to go to a party that was like these comment sections
if they are comparing MLBTR comments section to a party…
=================
Kepler isn’t big enough for a discussion, but if Judge or Anthony or Soto got suspended for PEDs, of course it’s going to be discussed at parties, at least among some groups.
JB
Hey. If you’re parties are like this comment section…uh…enjoy
I’m curious what type of discussions you have at parties. I make polite conversation with people I don’t really know. If my wife’s friends are in the discussion, we probably talk about the kids. If my wife’s friends’ husbands are in a discussion, we are probably talking about sports.
What do you discuss?
Again
If the MLBTR comment section is like the parties that you go to, and you enjoy that, good for you
Again, what do you discuss? I’m curious. The last big party I went to, we spent a lot of time discussing where we all came from. But amongst the guys, it was more likely about the Yankees, Mets, etc.
Don’t worry nobody would invite you.
I can’t help to think you actually had a thought there.
Ht
Muted
“You know what the difference between hitting .250 and .300 is? It’s 25 hits. Twenty-five hits in 500 at-bats is 50 points, OK? There’s six months in a season. That’s about 25 weeks. That means if you get just one extra flare a week, just one, a gork, a ground ball — a ground ball with eyes! — you get a dying quail, just one more dying quail a week and you’re in Yankee Stadium. You still don’t know what I’m talking about, do you?”
Old Crash Davis quote from Bull Durham. It has a good point. The difference between hitting 18 home runs in a year and hoping that by taking steroids you’ll get a little extra boost in your swing to get you just five more in the year has to probably seem very tempting when you’re looking down the barrel of the end of your career.
And that’s the thing, it’s not that steroids magically make someone better… it’s the hope that they will.
It’s the hope and the fact that it will if you utilize them properly. Simply taking them and changimg nothing else about your lifestyle will not yield results.
You real the rewards of the work you put in.
The fact that it’s Tren is crazy though
=====================
I didn’t realize it was Tren. Men’s Health mag did an article on PEDs, and tren was ranked as really, really bad. Kids get huge really quick, and then have a psychological addiction. It affects their behavior and decision-making, but they love their new image.
That’s not how they work
josh
People are jerks. Not intelligent. Terrible at nuance
Feel free to explain the nuance. I’m no saint. I researched HGH as a possible retirement option since I like lifting. And there is a reasonable chance I’d have taken them as a AAAA player, since I might have taken them even without financial incentive. And I’d love to try some coco leaves if they were legal to grow.
But I’m not seeing the nuance here. Feel free to enlighten me.
He can’t because he’s at a super cool party with kids from another school
I think he just posted that without a thought, and maybe wanted to use the word ‘nuance’. But it’s an opinion board. I see no reason the curtail his opinions. Let it rip.
I’m on MLBTR comments.
The coolest party!
@joshb600
Yeah, Bonds, McGwire, and Sosa would’ve still hit all those HRs without PEDs.
PEDs and still barely hit .200 lol. Straight buns
Almost like that’s not how PEDs work lol
He should demand a full refund.
The roids are just fine. It’s Tren it’s pretty intense
This comments wins. Thank you for your contribution to humanity today sir.
For real, he must’ve gotten a bad translation of the label.
This will likely tarnish his legacy 😭
I would like to hear the whole story before I banish him to the arctic or whatever everyone here is calling for.
That he sucked for 2 years in a row and stupidly thought that steroids might help? Is that the story you’re looking for? He wasn’t going to get much of a deal anyway even if he didn’t get popped, but now that he’s not available for half a season he won’t even get a milb deal.
Not really. People hear banned substance and think he was taking injections and getting jacked while increasing his hat size by 3x.
There are many substances on the banned list. He could have had a Protien shake that had a banned substance, a cream, a shampoo etc…
If he knew about the substance is irrelevant and he gets the suspension. But I want more context.
BTW you can get jacked and still suck at baseball. For instance me, if I got all BALCOed, I would still be bad at playing.
Well yeah. Most of what goes into hitting a baseball coming at 90+ MPH comes down to seeing the ball and guessing right. Most of what’s going into pitching well has more to do with sequencing and location than just throwing super duper hard. I’m guessing that Kepler took what he took because he wanted to try and maximize the damage he can do when he did make contact. Problem is he has never been that great at making a ton of contact.
If there’s one thing we know from positive tests is the player never takes responsibility. It was always an accident or a substance they didn’t know was banned. Or a trainer gave them the wrong thing.
Too bad for Kepler that Germany didn’t qualify for the WBC. He might be able to go work in Korea. Prob not good enough for Japan though.
Ringworm?
I think his MLB career is over.
Heilige scheiss! Damn
*scheiße
It might be why Philly was a flat he’s not coming back. They stopped playing him.
Defintely would not expect him. I know he had that 36 home run season with 3 off Bauer in one game, has always had a big power swing and is a great right fielder. He must be be trying to compete during his decline by any means possible.
I’m sure this was just a big misunderstanding on everybody’s part. I had to be something in that box of cereal that he was eating.
Yep, I’ve always wondered about those sugary cereals. Look how wired up kids get when they eat them. This is probably a case of eating too much Apple Jacks that he might’ve mixed with some Count Chocula.
man, he can’t begin serving the suspension until he signs somewhere. could a team get a steal and offer him league minimum so they can have him for the second half of the season?
That’s what I was thinking. Its literally the best offer he’ll get at this point.
I doubt he will get even that. He won’t be available until mid/late June at the earliest. If a team really wants OF help they could snag someone else who they know can play right away.
Yeah, I meant he’s not gonna get a better offer than that.
Does signing someone to a minor league contract allow the clock on the suspension to start?
Read the article.
Comment was written before the article was updated with details
Ope, there goes the HOF
Didn’t keep Smudge Rodriguez out.
I hope he saved the receipt on that Epitrenbolone.
Maybe he forgot to take his birth control pills to mask it.
Would it be an overreaction to say this is the end for him? Not that is the unforgivable sin, but does he even get signed? If not, then what?
The German stuff ain’t what it used to be I guess…
It’s not the 80s swim team days any more
Damn, that must have taken a very long time lol.
Give his age….could be a career-ender. Why? He’s been trending downward the last two seasons, but, still, why?
He obviously took the wrong stuff based on his performances.
Any athlete that thinks theyre going to get away with taking Tren has been seriously misinformed…
Didn’t expect this and after hearing the Chicago White Sox were interested in him for RF, glad it came out before signing.
And the German-born Kepler gets das boot 👢
Waiting for the obligatory I didn’t knowingly take said substance that everyone states after getting caught.
You can make that segment with a bunch of PEDs but Tren is the big leagues of steroids lol it’s injectable only. You can’t ingest it any other way.
He can always claim he misremembered using them.
Kepler has to sign somewhere just to begin the 80 game suspension? Really screwed the pooch there, didn’t ya, son?!?!
I didn’t knowingly take anything. It must have been in my cheesesteak.
That must have been a crunchy cheesesteak with the syringe needle in it.
Off-season testing ?
Did not know that was a thing.
Doubt any team will want to sign him for 80 games, especially with his recent stats. So close to a pension. Why chance it ?
Have fun retiring to the Black Forest.
Sheiskopf.
Profar’s suspension from the year before didn’t take effect until the following year. Braves signed him not knowing he had already been popped. Kepler should have signed earlier in the office season!
Since the suspension just became public I’m sure MLB has known for a while. And I’m sure MLB let teams know which probably destroyed whatever market he might have had.
They didn’t for Profar!
Can’t believe this guys still in the league. Good for him.
I wish they’d just ban these guys for life. No warning. Steroids needs to be out of the game.
He should’ve used Soul Glo instead. Although that’s the reason why Tatis Jr was suspended.
Not even sure Germany has a team for the. WBC but since Kepler is from Germany does this disqualify him from joining any WBC team.
Even with PED’s he still sucked.
“As a free agent, his suspension doesn’t start until he signs somewhere”
Considering this and his lack of performance, I would think his MLB career might be over. Unless he’s willing to take a minimum contract or something, I don’t see a team signing him knowing that he wouldn’t even play until like late June or July.
Will the Wal*Mart Beer League team honor the suspension?
Wait… it was a performance ENHANCING substance? Can you imagine his numbers without the juice?
The performance he “enhanced” was his contract he had signed with the Phillies for the 2025 season. Because his hitting during the season sure as hell wasn’t enhanced.
Wow, they need to shut this comment section down. The levels of ignorance are overwhelming
It’s become a clickbait site. Why would they shut down what is giving them clicks?
I see his career ending in the mlb Not because of the ped use (well that) and his diminished playing time due to his poor performance. Plus 80 games out if anyone signs him. He’s a multi millionaire so why bother?
Maybe he can catch on as an assistant firstbase coach somewhere
That’s a crazy “catch 22” in that his suspension won’t start until he signs. He’d be better off signing for league minimum just to start the clock.
I would agree…but hey he made over 52 million in that career. Having hard time feeling sorry for his choice to try and extend it.
Well, this sets the planets into motion.
I think somebody slipped it into his German potato salad.
That’s not how PEDS work.
(Sorry, couldn’t help myself)
He must need glasses then, because I can’t imagine him eating that potato salad with the syringe in it.
So my comment wasn’t approved because I used the word “crap”? lmao
Clearly they don’t take any crap from anyone.
33, had a down year, and slapped with a PED suspension during free agency. I’d be shocked if he find a home in baseball in 2026 any earlier than his suspension being complete and quite frankly, this may be the end of his career. He’ll try to come back to rinse the stink off but it could end up being worse
You ain’t cheatin’, you ain’t tryin’
That’s right! If you ain’t first, you’re last!
So we all now know that’s not how PEDs work, but do we know how they DO work?
Josh. Tell us one more time “thats not how they work” lol
Someone wasnt heard growing up
I think he’s juiced up on something that helps him have the endurance to say it so many times.
He should just seek the league minimum for a contract and offset the difference by doing some work for the Shelby family. *By the Authority of the Peaky Fookin Blinders”.
The language barrier claims another PED victim.
That drug was used for ringworm.
What’s wrong with that? Manny Ramirez was trying to get pregnant or trying to not get pregnant…or something like that. I kind of misremember it all like Andy Pettite and Roger Clemens did.
An Astros target, oh well no use for him now. He’s only getting a contract from a team that’s missing the playoffs.
…like the Astros?
Well, we are not missing the playoffs. If we were why sign Tatsuya Imai? At least we don’t intend to miss the playoffs, and our team isn’t going to miss the playoffs unless the 2026 club is the most injured club in Astros franchise history.
Maybe you’ll squeeze in as WC3, but you ain’t taking the west!
We’ll get in the postseason, whether it’s a division leader or wild card, but the AL West isn’t the Mariner’s possession. You guys are going to have to play us out.
He was never a target for us
Bench player, some suggested it. But without PEDs, maybe .190 BA
Did Harper give them to him?
There was no mention of Bryce Harper in the report.
I think he was making an old reference to Bryce Harper’s rise as a kid phenom. There were many many many whispers about his use of “supplements” as far back as his early teens. And it was only termed “supplements” because he and his parents said he used “supplements” as part of his regimen, before they were silenced. I remember those because my kid was playing in some of the younger showcase tournaments back then, and that was the word when we had to travel to the tournies in the Midwest and Desert region where Harper played. Our older team in his bracket played against him, I forget if it was either in the Midwest or a trip his team made to Florida, and that was something some of coaches and the kids were suspecting too – even one of the kids that actually did have a cup of tea in MLB later on.
I’m pretty sure that’s what the poster was alluding to.
Thanks. Mine was a benign response to an obvious sh¡tpost, but I appreciate your explanation.
Kepler got caught. How many other players use things like this that don’t get caught? So tired of “performance enhancing nonsense”. Let whoever take whatever the hell they want already. Enough with this moronic purest bs mentality. Nothing is pure… there is either getting caught or not, and sure not everyone uses but you’d be surprised at the amount that do.
I’ve been crucified here for saying the same thing but I agreee sir.
Best era of baseball I ever watched was the steroid era. Nothing even comes close.
“moronic purest”
Besides the irony, baseball is a game of records. I think most fans hate that someone broke Maris’ record and Arron’s record by cheating. In FB, I don’t know if Myles Garrett can attain his freaky athleticism without PEDs, but I also don’t care.
At this point the records have all been tainted which is unfortunate. Judge’s record season didn’t even get any juice bc even though we all knew it was the legit record we wasted all our energy on the fake chase with Sosa and Mac. PED’s damaged the game more than anyone can ever imagine. The bridge from present to past was broken because of the video game numbers put up.
Judge’s record season didn’t even get any juice
====================
That’s what is wrong. I didn’t even remember his 62 until you mentioned it. That’s a mammoth accomplishment that barely gets noticed
The Yankees uniform and all the money made for MLB (like McGwire, Sosa, and Bonds made) kid of blinds everyone.
Looks like his free agency is going to last quite a bit longer now…
Yep…into retirement.
Someone must have watered down his drugs since I did not notice an increase in power. He needs to buy them from a reputable dealer like BALCO..
In order to hit for power one has to actually hit the ball. Kepler is known for not even hitting the ball.
Took a roster spot from Justin Crawford all season long…
last person I would’ve expected to get a PEDS suspension
Well done lol
So many seem to think he must have tested in season, that is not an absolute. Players, even free agents are subject to random testing during the off season per the JDA unless the latest version changed.
Don’t have time to look right now but here is a link for the MLBPA websites JDA download
mlbplayers.com/jda
Played like a guy who needed steroids even though he took them.
Article needs updating. Espn’s article states there was a negotiated settlement between Kepler and MLB that his suspension would count games played by the Phillies if he is not on a team at the start of the season.
He must’ve tested positive during the season then yeah? How many games will he be credited for?
Has been updated.
Someday, you’ll see him vacuuming the turf at the astrodome….but still in baseball!
Welp
I wanted him as the Conforto replacement. This sucks, truly. I’ve liked him as a player since the beginning of his Twins days
He negotiated a settlement with the MLB? Has that happened before?
We chase misprinted lies
We face the path of time
And yet I fight, and yet I fight
This battle all alone
No one to cry to
No place to call home.
When in doubt, you can count on Alice.😎
Well, you know he needed to do it to get more playing time after halfway through the season. That the Phillies promised when signing him. Because the .210 batting average the first half of the season wasn’t getting him to the promise land.
I hate to say this, but I can see Anthopoulos viewing this as a value play, and signing him to a minor league deal.
without the PED’s though his wRC+ would have been only 67. And he wouldn’t have had the rage to speak up about being platooned.
I find it strange that it seems MLB catches all these players taking PEDs that show no sign of being performance enhanced… Kepler .216 18 HRs Galvis .226 3 HRs, Byrd .210 1 HR and .270 5 HRs, Stumpf 10.80 ERA 2 Ks and many others.
But no one suspects a fielder/pitcher who is playing both positions during a season is capable of hitting 44 HRs in 2023, 54 HRs in 2024 and 55 HRs in 2025 and is not suspicious? More HRs than most single position players hits every year. The pitcher in all of baseball with the most HRs in a single season is 9 HRs and you have to go all the way back to 1931 for that pitcher.
When is Ohtani going to be tested and caught?
Oh wait, MLB can’t give the interpreter as the fall guy as who they tested for his PED test?
MLB testing is a joke! They are only weeding out players that are nothing (money wise) to the sport.
Stop
Exactly my point! He needs to be tested and caught.
When is Ohtani going to be tested and caught?
==========================
I’m almost certain Ohtani was involved in the gambling thing, but I’m also pretty sure he’s not taking PEDs. The dude is a really good athlete, and has a beautiful swing.
With the disclaimer that almost any player ‘could be’ using.
Here’s the problem with testing Ohtani. While I admit I’m suspicious of him, Judge, and Stanton, and a few other guys with freakish strength, it’s a little tricky with Ohtani. I think all of us, whether we think he uses something or not, we also know that he comes from a part of the world where he has access to many things that can mask anything he uses from being deteceted in a test. Even if MLB tested him, I’m pretty sure he’ll get advanced notice to make sure he cleans it up. Same thing would be the case with Judge. MLB will not allow these two golden geese get busted. And I personally feel that the reason Stanton hasn’t been caught long after his decline is because he’s probably alongside Judge in usage as we see both of them could stand next to Superman or Hercules and make them look wimpy. Prior to that, Stanton was one of the money pieces in MLB.
But back to my main point. Ohtani, by being a golden goose to MLB would get advanced notice to clean anything up, and he also lives in a part of the world where he has access to many untraceable masking agents.
I agree with your comments. Why I also said, MLB testing is a joke! They are only weeding out players that are nothing (money wise) to the sport.
Ohtani, Judge and Stanton are all money to the sport. So, let’s catch the no names. We (MLB) look good to our fans in that we are testing and catching guilty players.
Wasn’t Stumpf the spider monkey? Explains a lot.
Interesting. This is why he didn’t sign a deal at the beginning of the off-season with whatever club was willing to sign him. Seems more above board than Profar signing with the Braves knowing he had been caught.
Wow, this won’t help his future with MLB at all.
Too bad he’s not a Boras client I’d love to see how he handles a situation like this.
Only 1 player MLB you got to be kidding. How about Verlander,Lindor,Grisham.Chisholm.and Bichette.
Thats a very specific list of players
He made $10 million last year. I won’t make that in my lifetime. I’d do PED’s for that amount of money.
This Max Surprise reminds one of Popeye masking his obviously rampant steroid abuse with that cockamamie spinach can ruse. I always knew.
And again, this is why this sewer of a comments section should be closed on PED posts
Why? It’s an interesting discussion.
PEDs and still couldn’t muster an OPS above.700
Wait… are you gonna tell me that there’s such a thing as doping in American sports? I’ve always been told that only evil communists are capable of such despicable things. Is Kepler a commie after all?
It’s probably just Putin behind all this.
Gorbachev!
Those were his numbers on roids? Yikes.
O Ped!
Great timing dummy
Loser
Why do guys even take the chance anymore? How do they think they can get past the drug screens in this day and age? How often are they tested anyway?
Pc
How do you know there aren’t lots of guys who aren’t getting busted?
Agreed, I bet there are still lots of players getting away with it. The money they can make is to tempting.
If I had to speculate, I’d guess that he timed his usage to coincide with the end of the season, and maybe right after he just had a test. I’m pure as the driven snow, but if I were to do such a thing, I’d do it for the shortest period possible, as intensely as possible, to try to avoid being noticed.
I guess Kepler has a different “doctor” than these other guys that are totally not on steroids. (Spoiler) the other guys take them too, they just know when to cycle on and off.
Normally, I question why guys would risk it, but with Kepler I get it. Fringe major leaguer, trying to chase his former success and get signed again. He’s trying to secure his future. It’s a difference of millions.
They should drug test posters on here.
I get tested two times a year. It’s a test of potato chip consumption, but I still have to deal with the guilt.
After reading this whole comment section, I think I realized that Josh is actually just a sales rep for tren. He doesn’t want people thinking his product doesn’t work because Kepler played poorly despite doping.
His defense of the PEDs by saying you still have to do the work is obvious, but interesting.
The Guardians kinda cornered the market on getting guys coming out of TJ surgery. Who’s it gonna be to open their arms and doors and say c’mon down Mr Kepler? Maybe a team really short on OF talent.
All this trashing of Kepler, but when one of your Dominican cheaters gets caught, it’s “He should be allowed to cheat”. Pathetic.
I never realize that Ryan Braun was Dominican. I seem to remember that argument being presented when he was busted.
For me, bust and ban them all.
Good. Bust them all!
The joke that the PED’s didn’t work for Kepler isn’t really accurate. MLB tests 10X per year, so it was likely his last test in Sept or Oct., and not enough games left to improve his numbers. But it’s still a good joke.
I’m pretty sure that MLB will make sure Shohei and Judge never test positive.
Covid vaccine? No thanks. steroids? Yes please! Douchebag…
He’s not douchebag. More like Deutschbah
Kepler: 80 games!!!
Bregman, Springer, Altuve: crickets
I understand allowing his suspension to start now, rather than when/if he signs with a team. Starting the suspension only when he signs means he’d basically never get signed.
I don’t understand the part about his playing time last year w/ the Phillies counting, though. Why would the suspension not start on game 1 of the coming season?
Kepler is turning 34 on Febuary 10th 2026. So he’s 34 this season, if they strike that’s 35 in 2027. So he might get a smidgen contract in 2028 as a 36yr old. Not to smart Max!
MLB needs to just institute a lifetime ban for PED use.