Alex Rodriguez, others suspended by MLB for drugs

Monday, August 05, 2013

New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez answers questions from the media during a press conference after a minor league baseball rehab start with the Trenton Thunder in a game against the Reading Fightin Phils, Saturday, Aug. 3, 2013 at Arm & Hammer Park in Trenton, N.J.. (AP Photo/Rich Schultz)

Tags:

drugs, steroids, mlb

NEW YORK -- Alex Rodriguez was suspended through 2014 and All-Stars Nelson Cruz, Jhonny Peralta and Everth Cabrera were banned 50 games apiece Monday when Major League Baseball disciplined 13 players in a drug case - the most sweeping punishment since the Black Sox scandal nearly a century ago.

Ryan Braun's 65-game suspension last month and previous punishments bring to 18 the total number of players disciplined for their relationship to Biogenesis of America, a closed anti-aging clinic in Florida accused of distributing banned performing-enhancing drugs.

The harshest penalty was reserved for Rodriguez, a three-time Most Valuable Player and baseball's highest-paid star. His suspension covers 211 games, starting Thursday, and he is expected to appeal.

Story: Monday MLB drug deal deadline as playoffs loom

The New York Yankees slugger admitted four years ago that he used performance-enhancing drugs while with Texas from 2001-03 but has repeatedly denied using them since.

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Tags:

drugs, steroids, mlb