Philadelphia – With Major League Baseball officials planning to push for blood testing for human growth hormone next season, there is no guarantee it will pass with the players association.
Two veteran Rockies players – relievers Matt Herges and LaTroy Hawkins – provided a glimpse Thursday about why the issue will be the subject of intense debate before making it into the collective bargaining agreement.
Both want the sport clean, but predicted the union would proceed with caution.
“The whole thing is an eyesore. (HGH) is something none of us wants in the game,” Her- ges said. “I do think (baseball should use) whatever it takes to eliminate all the doubt and all the garbage. If we are talking about a urine test, I think that would be agreed upon overnight. But a blood test is so intrusive. That’s a next-level kind of step.”
Dr. Don Catlin, the chief of the Olympic Analytical Laboratory at UCLA, received a $500,000 grant from Major League Baseball to develop an HGH urine test, with commissioner Bud Selig promising additional funding. Catlin has said in March that urine screening could be a year away and conceded it might not happen.
That has led to more focus on blood testing, which the World Anti-Doping Agency believes will be available in mass production by December. Blood tests were used in the 2004 Summer Olympics and 2006 Winter Games, but the absence of positives created doubt about their reliability in the scientific community.
HGH is on baseball’s banned-substance list. However, there’s no test for it. Multiple players have been linked to HGH during the past year, most notably former pitcher Jason Grimsley and current St. Louis outfielder Rick Ankiel.
“It’s too much stuff involved. I don’t see it happening anytime soon,” Hawkins said. “But if they can come up with a blood test and we get our own independent (panel) that feels it’s accurate, then maybe it would happen.”
Redman to start
Mark Redman went from a left-handed complement to a key component. Redman, with five scoreless innings Wednesday, earned a Tuesday start in the second game of a doubleheader against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Coors Field.
“It’s one thing to want an opportunity and another to take advantage of it. I think I did that,” Redman said.
Footnotes
It is doubtful Kazuo Matsui will play this weekend against the Florida Marlins. He said his hamstring feels better when he hits, but he hasn’t run at full strength….Possible starter Elmer Dessens plans to throw a bullpen session Saturday to test his strained left hamstring. … Outfielder Seth Smith has made progress in his shoulder rehabilitation and remains a candidate to be activated.
