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  "path": "/white-sox/2026/04/29/alexei-ramirez-white-sox-shortstop-tests-positive-for-steroids-at-world-baseball-classic-wbc-cuba",
  "publishedAt": "2026-04-29T19:28:44.502Z",
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  "textContent": "<p>LAUSANNE, Switzerland — Fomer <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/white-sox\" >White Sox</a> shortstop Alexei Ramírez tested positive for four anabolic steroids at the World Baseball Classic in March, where he set a record as its oldest player.</p><p>The 44-year-old Cuban tested positive for \"metabolites of mesterolone, metandienone, oxandrolone and stanozolol,\" the International Testing Agency said Wednesday in announcing his provisional ban from the sport.</p><p>Ramírez played nine years in Major League Baseball mostly at shortstop for the White Sox (2008-15), San Diego Padres (2016) and Tampa Bay Rays (2016). He was runner-up in the 2008 American League Rookie of the Year vote, won by the Rays' Evan Longoria.</p><p>An Olympic champion with Cuba at the 2004 Athens Games, Ramírez was on the silver medal-winning team at the 2006 WBC, won by Japan. There, the 43-year-old Roger Clemens set the previous record for oldest player by representing the United States.</p><p>Ramírez returned to the Cuba roster 20 years later as a bench player to break the mark.</p><p>The ITA said it notified Ramírez of the result from a sample taken during the tournament. Cuba did not advance from the pool phase.</p><p>The agency based in Lausanne, Switzerland, said the steroids in question are \"associated with promoting rapid muscle growth, increased strength and enhanced physical performance.\"</p><p>An All-Star in 2014, Ramírez had a .246 career average with 115 homers and 590 RBIs.</p><div class=\"PageListL\" data-module data-hide-authors=\"true\" data-hide-categories=\"true\" data-hide-dates=\"true\" data-show-loadmore=\"true\" ><a class=\"AnchorLink\" id=\"list-4a0005\" name=\"list-4a0005\"></a><div class=\"PageList-header\" > <div class=\"PageList-header-title-wrap\" > <div class=\"PageList-header-title\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/white-sox\" target=\"{borderColor=#dfdfdf, pageNumber=1, inverseColors=false, footerBgColor=#000000, bodyFont=font-3, showListNumbers=false, imagePositionHorizontal=null, rteBodyFont=font-3, headerBottomBorderColor=#111010, subTitle=null, stickyHeader=true, listTitleColor=#000000, tableCellBorderColor=#ccd1d5, relatedListFont=font-1, hideAuthors=true, tertiaryTextColor=#6c6c6c, buttonHoverTextColor=#ffffff, pullQuoteIcon=[{image=null, narrowImage=null, _template=/image/Image.hbs, alt=null}], tableFont=font-1, carouselAutoPlay=false, pagination=[{body=[Next Page], href=?p=2, _template=/link/Link.hbs, contentId=null, pianoSectionSlug=null, target=null}], promoTitleFont=font-2, ctaButtonText=[], primaryTextColor=#2a2a2a, buttonTextColor=#ffffff, count=9862, linkTextColor=#1a1a1a, hideTitles=false, footerLinkColor=#ffffff, carouselSpeed=null, buttonHoverBgColor=#a91d23, rteHeadingFont=font-1, secondaryColor=#656565, hideCategories=true, _template=/page/list/includes/PageList-header.hbs, font3=Arial, font4=Source-serif-4, ctaUrl=null, pageCount=2466, hideImage=false, footerLinkHoverColor=#d3242c, hideAudioPlayback=false, items=[{type=Image, timestamp=1777491540000, _styledTemplate=null, authors=[{name=[{items=[Mitchell Armentrout]}], ampLink=null, _styledTemplate=null, jobTitle=[{items=[Reporter/assistant editor]}], _template=/author/byline/AuthorByline.hbs, bio=[{items=[Mitchell Armentrout is a staff reporter covering government and politics from Chicago to Springfield, focusing on the expansion of gambling across Illinois as well as the Chicago Bears’ quest for a new stadium. 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  "title": "Former White Sox shortstop Alexei Ramírez tested positive for steroids at World Baseball Classic",
  "updatedAt": "2026-04-29T19:28:44.502Z"
}