Report: MLB to test for HGH By Sports Network

St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols walks past the World Series logo during practice in St. Louis, Missouri, October 18, 2011. REUTERS/Jeff Haynes

New York, NY - Major League Baseball’s new collective bargaining agreement, which should be announced next week, will include blood testing for human growth hormone for the first time, according to a report.

Citing two people briefed on the matter, The New York Times said Saturday that MLB’s new labor deal will call for blood testing to begin when players report for spring training in February.

It will make MLB the first major North American sport to blood test unionized players. Baseball has tested minor league players since 2010 because it didn’t need the union’s consent.

The revelation comes more than five years after MLB commissioner Bud Selig told fans the league was ready to tackle the issue of HGH by funding a study.

In 2007, former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell unveiled a report on performance-enhancing drugs in MLB that detailed the league’s HGH problem.

The NFL’s new 10-year collective bargaining agreement was to include blood testing for HGH, but players eventually rejected the idea.