HGH Testing Not What It Seems

Last week, Major League Baseball instituted random HGH testing at the minor league level. On the face of it, it seems like the sport is finally attempting to get past the Steroid Era as it would be the first major American sport to test for such a substance.

But as with everything in life, there is a lot more to it than meets the eye. The optimal result is for such testing to move up to the major league level, but the league knows that the MLB Players Union will never go for it. Michael Wiener, the Executive Director of the MLBPA, released a statement in which he said, "The union's position on hGH testing remains unchanged; when a test is available that is scientifically validated and that can be administered safely and without interfering with the players' ability to compete, it will be considered."

Normally I would be the first person to condemn the Players Association for their stupidity. I mean, there remains a large contingency of fans who think steroids are still a huge part of the sport. And in a time when middle and low class fans are being priced out of games, some good will would go a long way in bringing fans back.

But here's the rub - HGH testing remains an imperfect science as it is susceptible to both false negatives (ie - not detecting the drug in those where it is truly present) and false positives (ie - incorrectly 'detecting' the drug in those where it is not present). The former is a question of whether testing is worth the hassle. Why institute a pricey test if it doesn't do its job? The latter is the bigger problem. When you are told you have cancer only to later find out the test was wrong, you will probably be annoyed for a little bit but ultimately relieved. When the media is told that a player has tested positive for HGH, the stink never goes away. It doesn't matter if they are later found to be innocent - the player will always be linked to HGH because public perception is reality. So yeah, I can understand where the union is coming from. There #1 job is to protect the players.

Unfortunately for them, as I said before, public perception is reality. By saying NO to HGH testing at the major league level, the union is no doubt going to take a public relations hit. To the common fan, this is a smack in the face. They are going to look terrible.

And this is exactly what MLB wanted as it gives them a bargaining chip in the upcoming CBA negotiations. The league knows the union won't go for HGH testing, so they can use it to get something else in return. One can thus argue that the league itself isn't even interested in HGH testing for the good of the game. Rather, they are interested in HGH testing as a bargaining chip.

The sport has the opportunity to make some positive gains with being proactive in regards to testing. But once again, they are showing how out of touch they are with their fanbase as they introduced HGH testing solely to further their own agenda.