Selig - Goverment's help is welcome in fighting steroids

NEW YORK -- Baseball commissioner Bud Selig would accept government intervention on steroid testing if the players' association refuses to change the current rules, which run for two more years.

Sen. John McCain has threatened to propose legislation that would override the drug-testing provisions in baseball's collective bargaining agreement. Selig says there should be more frequent testing and harsher penalties for positive tests than called for in the labor contract signed by owners and players two years ago.

"If we cannot resolve this issue privately, I gladly will accept whatever help is offered by Senator McCain to achieve our ultimate goal," Selig said in a statement Monday.

Officials of the union and management have met several times since May to discuss Selig's call for changes, but no agreement has been reached. Union head Donald Fehr said talks will resume after the weeklong annual meeting of the union's executive board, which began Monday.

"I appreciate the support of Senator McCain," Selig said, adding that the "illegal use of these substances is damaging" baseball's credibility.

"Perhaps, most damaging, it encourages our young fans to use these horrible substances," Selig said. "While I would prefer to resolve this problem directly with the players' association and jointly implement a much stronger drug-testing policy in major league baseball, one modeled after our program in the minor leagues, I understand the need for swift and resolute action."

Selig had surgery Monday to remove a cancerous lesion from his forehead and was unavailable for further comment. Fehr was at the executive board meeting in Phoenix and did not return a telephone message.

"The realities between the press releases and conviction can be a wide one," said Gene Orza, the union's chief operating officer.

Reporters were barred from the lobby by Royal Palms Resort and Spa, preventing them from having access to most players.

"We committed to them that we would provide a quiet, intimate location for their meeting, and that's what we've committed to do," Greg Miller, the hotel's general manager, said.

Union spokesman Greg Bouris said the decision was made by the hotel.

"They're just trying to respect the privacy of their guests, I would assume," Bouris said.

After arriving at the hotel, Rich Aurilia declined to comment. Reached on his cell phone, even the usually talkative Curt Schilling refused to discuss steroids.

Baseball didn't ban steroids until Sept. 30, 2002, and testing for steroids with penalties started only this year. Each player is tested once from the start of spring training through the end of the regular season, and a first positive test results in counseling. A player who tests positive a second time could be suspended for 15 days and discipline rises to a one-year suspension for a fifth positive test.

Players with minor league contracts are not covered by collective bargaining. They are tested four times per year, in and out of season, and have a wider list of banned substances, including Human Growth Hormone and amphetamines. They are subject to a 15-game suspension for a first positive steroid test, a one-year penalty for a fourth positive test and a lifetime ban from the minors for a fifth positive test.

"The minor league program has been very effective at getting us to very low positive rates in the minor leagues," said Rob Manfred, executive vice president of labor relations in the commissioner's office.

Chicago White Sox general manager Kenny Williams said possible steroid use had become a factor he weighed in evaluations of trades and signings.

"That's part of the equation," he said. "If you have not thought about it in recent years, you've had your head buried in the sand. That just kind of goes along right into the pot along with scouting reports, how he is in the clubhouse. The one thing about it is it's kind of a floating variable. If you don't have any proof, you're really operating on pure conjecture."

U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona called for other pro sports to examine whether their athletes are abusing steroids.

"From my standpoint, it is less a moral or ethical issue than it is a public health issue," he said. "If youngsters are seeing their role models practicing this kind of behavior and it seems acceptable, then we need to do something about that because it is a health risk."

World Anti-Doping Agency head Dick Pound said recent reports of testimony and public discussion could mark a turning point in efforts to rid sports of drugs.

"There's going to be a lot more focus in America particularly, but also around the world," he said. "People will say, 'OK, enough, we've got to stop this.' ... For those of us in anti-doping, that is a good thing."

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Associated Press Writers Bob Baum in Phoenix, Scott Sonner in Reno, Nev., and Derek Gatopoulos in Athens, Greece, contributed to this report