Now, it appears Cabrera did anything but go quietly once baseball's steroid cops were on his case.
The New York Daily News is reporting that Cabrera and at least one of his handlers concocted an elaborate scheme to get his positive test thrown out, including creating a web site that was to advertise a topical cream that does not exist.
Cabrera apparently believed he could have his positive test overturned by attemping to prove he ingested a banned substance through no fault of his own.
The Daily News reports that Juan Nunez, a "paid associate" of Cabrera's agents, Seth and Sam Levinson, spent upward of $10,000 to acquire a web site and then create an advertisement for a topical cream that they'd ostensibly claim Cabrera took not knowing it would trigger a positive drug test.
But Cabrera's end run around the drug policy did not get far. In fact, Cabrera did not go through baseball's appeal process, accepting his ban before the information-gathering portion was complete.
The Daily News also reports that Cabrera's maneuvers have attracted attention from federal investigators and further scrutiny from MLB; Seth and Sam Levinson are reportedly not part of the federal probe.
Why allegedly concoct such a thin alibi? Well, Cabrera and others who test positive may feel emboldened by Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun's successful appeal of a 50-game suspension when his sample showed elevated levels of testosterone.
The language in the drug policy that Braun exploited has since been tightened up. As for Cabrera's caper? Perhaps he should have known that creating phony web sites and products usually doesn't end well.