MLB Commissioner Bud Selig's office is expected to suspend Ryan Braun and Alex Rodriguez, as well as 20 other players sometime after next week's All-Star break, according to several sources of ESPN's "Outside the Lines."
Players who are on the list of the expected suspensions will be directly tied to the investigations to Biogenesis founder Tony Bosch, and any involvement in purchasing or using illegal performance enhancing drugs.
Bosch's attorneys have met repeatedly with MLB officials over the past month, turning over numerous documents to substantiate his connection to the players named in company documents, sources have said.
Now all that remains to be reported is how long the expected suspensions are expected to last.
"We are still in the midst of an active investigation," said spokesman Pat Courtney. "No decisions (on suspensions) have been made."
Sources said the commissioner's office was considering 100-game bans for Braun and Rodriguez, the punishment for a second offense, even though neither player was previously suspended for violating MLB's drug policy.
Braun's name was listed more than once with payments owed to Bosch, but Braun has maintained that his attorney's only used Bosch as a consultant for what came to be a successful appeal of a positive test for elevated testosterone levels in October 2011.
Braun played in his first game Tuesday night against Cincinnati after going on the 15-day disabled list on June 10 with a thumb injury. After the game he continued his policy of offering no new details about the investigation but did take shots at the accuracy of the reports.
"In regards to that whole crazy situation, the truth hasn't changed," said Braun. "I'm still going to continue to respect the process and not discuss anything in the media. Beyond that, I think the vast majority of the stories that have come out are inaccurate. Aside from that, I'm not going to say anything."
Meanwhile, Rodriguez is expected to meet with MLB investigators in Friday.
Even though Rodriguez hasn't failed a test for illegal PEDs since the initial survey tests in 2003, he could be suspended for associating with Bosch. There's also a question of whether Rodriguez's previous denials to MLB of illegal PED usage during a 2010 interview could be used against him.
Rodriguez, who admitted using illegal PEDS as a Ranger, has denied involvement with Bosch and the closed anti-aging clinic in Rodriguez's hometown of Miami.
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