Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Jose Alvarado has been suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball.
MLB announced on Sunday that Alvarado has received an 80-game suspension for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy.
Alvarado will not appeal the suspension, which the Phillies say was the result of the left-hander taking a weight loss drug.
José Alvarado accepted the suspension. Dave Dombrowksi said it was a weight loss drug that caused him to fail. Phillies will treat it like losing someone to an injury. More to come.
— Tim Kelly (@TimKellySports) May 18, 2025
Alvarado is listed at 6-foot-2, 245 pounds. The 29-year-old jokingly expressed concern about his own weight during an interview last year in which he dropped an F-bomb on live television. He said he had told people in the clubhouse, “Bro, I feel like a fat boy, I’m f–ing fat.”
Alvarado is in his fifth season with the Phillies and eighth MLB season overall. He is 4-1 with a 2.70 ERA this year and has 7 saves in 20 appearances.
While Alvarado will be eligible to return before the end of the regular season, he will be ineligible for the playoffs if the Phillies make it that far, per MLB rules.
The Phillies entered Sunday with a record of 27-18 and in second place in the NL East. Alvarado is a key piece of their bullpen, so they may look to acquire a left-handed pitcher to help replace him at some point.
