Baseball's Drug Policy Takes Hit
Breaking news: Major Leagues Baseballs drug-testing policy is a joke. OK, so its not exactly, groundbreaking, earth-shattering news, but its worse than you think. Apparently, the leagues random, unannounced drug tests arent so unannounced after all. In fact, theyre completely announced, as loudly and as clearly as [Al Gores message] that the world is crumbling and Armageddon is here.
According to multiple sources, [testers call teams] one day or more in advance in search of stadium and parking passes. One official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said his team finds out about testing nearly two days ahead of a visit. Another said trainers are often informed the morning of the tests and begin setting up in the clubhouse. Upon hearing this, experts said that players using a cream-based steroid or a patch can cheat the system with just a few hours notice. As soon as you know you are going to be tested, you rip off the patch and take a shower and urinate, and in an hour or two you will get numbers down real fast, said Don Catlin, the founder of the Anti-Doping Research Institute in Los Angeles.
This report only further proves that baseball has been complicit in their steroids scandal. Theyll tell you they dont know if teams are informing their players that drug testers are coming, just like they didnt know that Sammy Sosa was taking steroids even though he transformed from an emaciated, Dominican farmhand into the Incredible Hulk in one season. But if thats true, the only thing larger than the MLBs naïveté is their payers heads.