Diamondbacks sign veteran bat with PED history to one-year deal
· Yahoo Sports
The Diamondbacks signed veteran outfielder Max Kepler to a one-year deal on Sunday, June 7, taking a low-cost wager on the type of left-handed hitting bat their lineup has been missing.
Kepler is currently serving an 80-game suspension for testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance. Under the terms of his suspension, which was announced in January, he was able to serve the 80 games even as a free agent, his schedule mirroring that of his former team, the Philadelphia Phillies.
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The Phillies played their 65th game on Sunday, meaning Kepler still has another 15 games remaining, making him eligible to return on June 25. He is allowed to go on a minor league rehab assignment of up to 15 days before becoming eligible.
Kepler is not eligible to play in the postseason due to his suspension.
A source said Kepler will make a prorated portion of the major league minimum, which would essentially be half of $780,000.
In theory, Kepler could be the sort of bat the Diamondbacks had been thinking about targeting for their lineup ahead of the trade deadline, someone who would represent an upgrade against right-handed pitching.
He owns a career .770 OPS against right-handed pitching, which is nothing special but still is better than what Adrian Del Castillo (.638 OPS) has managed against righties this year. That said, Kepler’s numbers against righties have come in below his career mark the past two seasons; he had a .672 OPS vs. righties in 2024 and a .704 OPS against them in 2025.
The Diamondbacks have tended to shy away from players with PED suspensions. One somewhat recent exception was outfielder Starling Marte, whom the Diamondbacks acquired ahead of the 2020 season, a few years after he was popped for a positive test in 2017.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Diamondbacks sign suspended veteran Max Kepler to 1-year deal