MLB May Halt Marijuana Testing For Minor Leaguers

Major League Baseball is working on a new drug agreement with the players’ union that would introduce several changes to athlete drug testing, according to CBS Sports. 

The new agreement could remove marijuana from the league’s list of banned substances for minor–league players, the Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal said Tuesday in a tweet. Major league players have not been subject to marijuana testing. 

Several minor league players are suspended for marijuana use every season, and last year there were 13 suspensions, CBS said. 

Don’t miss out on the top cannabis stories of the day. Click here to sign up for our daily insider newsletter.

The current drug agreement calls for non-40-man roster minor leaguers to be suspended for 25 games for the first positive marijuana test; 50 games for the second positive test; 100 games for the third positive test; and a lifetime ban for a fourth positive test. 

In addition, the new agreement would also introduce opioid testing and require players who test positive for opioids to enter a treatment program in lieu of a suspension. 

Although the new agreement has not been completed yet, MLBPA Exeuctive Director Tony Clark recently declared a positive outlook on the MLB and the player’s union reaching an agreement before the end of 2019.