NEW YORK (AP) — Tampa Bay Rays slugger Manny Ramirez has notified Major League Baseball that he is retiring after being notified of an issue under MLB's drug policy.
The commissioner's office issued a statement Friday that said Ramirez decided to retire rather than go through MLB's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.
The statement did not say whether Ramirez tested positive for a banned substance. He has previously served a 50-game suspension for violating the drug policy while he was with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
MLB declined to comment further.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press.
