MiLB drug program testing the waters for MLB
While the Mitchell Report and its findings are on the front page of every sports section across America and the lips of every baseball fan around the world, it is a story that impacts more than just Major League Baseball's players and fans.Many of the report's findings, conclusions and suggestions refer to or encompass Minor League Baseball as well -- and that shouldn't be surprising.
In fact, Minor League Baseball was something of a "guinea pig" for the Commissioner's Office as far back as 2001, when the office implemented drug testing around the Minors. The program was used as a basis for the proposal made to the Players Association the next year when they began discussing such a program for the Majors, a program which was officially implemented in 2005.
There is a handy table that shows the differences between the MiLB and MLB programs with penalties, discipline, and procedures included.
Also, there is this little nugget:
However you look at it, the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program (MLDPTP) has worked to a large degree, with the number of positive tests and suspensions dropping increasingly since its inception.
In 2001, two rounds of random in-season testing resulted in a 9.1 percent positive result. In 2002, that number fell to 4.8 percent and in 2003 it dropped further to 4 percent. By 2005, only 1.78 percent of random player tests came out positive, and that number dropped even further to 0.36 percent in 2006 (2007 results are not yet available).
And this one:
The Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program is and continues to be a work in progress, as the rules, restrictions and penalties are regularly updated. In fact, changes for the 2008 season, such as additional new banned substances and the streamlining of timing set forth in the policy, were already in progress when the Mitchell Report was released and will be finalized and announced in coming weeks.
Go and read the whole thing.
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