By Ronald Blum

NEW YORK — Free agent outfielder Max Kepler was suspended for 80 games on Friday following a positive test for a banned performance-enhancing substance in violation of Major League Baseball’s drug program.

Kepler tested positive for Epitrenbolone, a substance that led to a suspension in 2018 for boxer Manuel Charr. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency announced the following year that a positive test for the substance caused it to disqualify 90-year-old cyclist Carl Grove from a world record he had set at the 2018 Masters Track National Championship.

Epitrenbolone is a metabolite of Trenbolone, which is in some products used in body-building stores and had been used to promote cattle growth. Kepler is the first player suspended by MLB for the substance since public announcements of penalty details began in 2005.

There was no immediate comment from the players’ association or his agency.

Kepler accepted the suspension without contesting the discipline, a person familiar with the process told The Associated Press.

Kepler, who turns 33 next month, is an 11-year major league veteran who spent last season with the Phillies after playing his first 10 seasons with the Minnesota Twins. He became a free agent after the World Series. The Phillies stated early in the offseason that they were unlikely to bring Kepler back.

Kepler hit .216 with 18 homers and 52 RBIs last year after agreeing to a $10 million, one-year contract. He was slowed in 2024 by left patellar tendinitis and had core surgery after the season to repair a sports hernia.

Fourteen players were suspended last year for positive tests, including two under the major league program. Atlanta Braves outfielder Jurickson Profar was banned for 80 games on March 31 and Phillies closer José Alvarado for 80 games on May 25.

If Kepler doesn’t have a contract by opening day, MLB and the union usually allow suspended free agents to serve their penalty as long as they are attempting to reach a deal with teams.

Kepler grew up in Germany and signed with the Twins at age 16 in 2009. He has a .235 average with 179 homers and 560 RBIs in his big league career.