Amid a growing steroid controversy, Major League Baseball
announced Tuesday that it has moved drug tests for minor leaguers
to UCLA’s drug testing lab.
The UCLA Olympic Analytical Laboratory is the only lab in the
United States certified by the World Anti-Doping Agency. It
currently conducts drug testing for the NFL and many smaller
sports.
Dr. Don Catlin, the lab’s director, said he has wanted to
add minor league drug testing for months.
“I felt the best way to deal with the steroid problem
would be to take on minor league drug testing, where management is
able to make decisions,” Catlin said.
Baseball’s management and the players union have debated
the steroid issue all season. The two sides still must agree on a
site for major league testing.
But management can make decisions on its own when it comes to
minor league drug testing, and it decided to go with UCLA’s
strong reputation.
“With testing moved to a WADA-certified laboratory, we
believe the Minor League drug-testing program will continue to help
eradicate the use of performance-enhancing substances,” Rob
Manfred, MLB’s executive vice president of labor relations
said in a statement.
The lab has been doing high profile athletics drug testing for
over 20 years. It was created specifically for the 1984 Olympics,
held in Los Angeles.
Baseball’s testing change is part of a broader plan to try
to address the steroid issue, which has become much more prevalent
over the last few seasons.
Catlin said he wanted to get involved with baseball’s drug
testing as the steroid issue received more attention.
Doing drug testing with the minor leagues is the most effective
way to curb steroid use, he said.
“Where the minor league program goes, eventually the major
league program goes,” Catlin said.
With baseball’s plethora of minor leagues, doing minor
league testing will be four times the work of major league
testing.
There was some discussion of UCLA taking over major league
testing as well, but MLB and the players’ union agreed on a
Montreal-based lab instead.