Soto, Dope & The MLB Drug Policy

It turns out that the Cubs underachieving catcher is just high. At least that's the word from Chris DeLuca via Twitter (and elsewhere now): ChrisDeLuca Cubs catcher Geovany Soto tested positive for marijuana during 2009 World Baseball Classic. MLB and Cubs will not discipline Soto. Marijuana is listed on Major League Baseball's banned substances as a "drug of abuse" under its Drug Treatment Program. But how did they find out he was using? From MLB policy: Except as set forth in Section 3.A or Section 5.B (as to Stimulants) or Section 3.C or Section 4.E, Players shall not be subject to testing for the use of any Drug of Abuse. So, what are sections 3.A, 5.B, 3.C or 4.E? 3.A applies to stimulants, 4.E deals with back-end treatment programs, and 5.B covers follow-up testing to a failed stimulant drug test. That leaves us with 3.C, which governs "reasonable cause testing," which means that the league had "reasonable cause to believe that (Soto) had, in the previous 12-month period, engaged in the use, possession, sale or distribution ofa prohibited subtance" and therefore was "subect to immediate testing." Update: Carrie Muskat's blog seems to imply that he was tested as part of the World Baseball Classic and is ineligible for international play for two years. Odd. I was under the impression the WBC was an MLB vanity project. Instead, it was created by Major League Baseball and sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation. And here's an interesting tidbit from Wikipedia (so it must be true): Owners, notably New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, had been concerned about their star players being injured in international play before the beginning of spring training, and the professional season. This was a concern for the MLBPA as well, but their primary objection was with drug testing. MLB wanted the stricter Olympic standards in place for the tournament, while the union wanted current MLB standards in place. Eventually, a deal was reached on insurance for player contracts and a fairly tough drug testing standard. Back to original post: So why isn't Soto suspended or somehow other punished? Perhaps international tests don't apply to MLB rules - which would seem to be a gap in allegedly "tough" drug-testing policies. Or, judging by Section 4 of the program, it appears he would be placed on a "clinical track," under which first-time violators enter a treatment program that they must cooperate with and not get into any more trouble - lest they be transferred to the "treatment track." Treatment track=suspension. Then again, Soto could be a glaucoma patient and be skating by through Section 3.G: A Player authorized to ingest a Prohibited Substance through a valid, medically appropriate prescription provided by a duly licensed physician shall receive a Therapeutic Use Exemption ("TUE"). Probably not. But the fact we're talking about this, though, leads me to believe that someone somehow has run afoul of good old Section 6.A (if MLB disclosure standards were in place): Except as provided in Section 7 below, the Commissioner's Office, the Association, the Treatment Board, the IPA, the Medical Testing Offcer, Club personnel, and all of their members, affiliates, agents, consultants and employees, are prohibited from publicly disclosing information about an individual Player's test results or testing history, Initial Evaluation, diagnosis, Treatment Program (including whether a Player is on either the Clinical or Administrative Track), prognosis with a Treatment Program. Then again, we've all seen just how confidential those tests really are.