Putting Baseball to the Test

(2 of 2)

This season the National League champion San Diego Padres have lost Second Baseman Alan Wiggins to a drug-care unit for the second time in three years. His relapse was particularly pathetic because the Padres embraced Wiggins in the manner of a loving family standing by a troublesome son. They avoided being judgmental, and Owner Joan Kroc visited him at the detoxification center. "I will never give up on any human being as long as they are breathing," she says, but the club has suspended Wiggins for the rest of the season. After his treatment settled a 1982 cocaine possession charge, Wiggins gave inspiring talks to youth groups for the San Diego police department. His unpolished delivery was so earnestly affecting that he was chosen to represent the Padres in one of 26 national antidrug television spots. In a badly timed news release, the announcement of his good work nearly coincided with the disclosure that he had slipped again.

If the particulars of Ueberroth's program have been worked out, the details have not been released. But owners and general managers are racing each other to be No. 1 in line. "I endorse it heavily," says Chicago Cubs General Manager Dallas Green; St. Louis Executive Fred Kuhlmann offers, "I would be the first to volunteer."

Since they are not members of the union, all minor leaguers will be compelled to take the tests, though cocaine is not a drug generally associated with smaller salaries. At that, urine sampling is common if not routine in the bush leagues already. The Hagerstown Suns, Baltimore's Class A farmhands, thought it hilarious that the commissioner's edict fell on the day of their regular checkup. "We'll standardize the tests, though," says Ueberroth, whose Olympic experience assures him that the results are dependable. Maybe, like helmets in hockey, the tests will become such a matter of course in the minors that they will hardly be noticed by the next generation. But Don Fehr, acting executive director of the union, seems to doubt it. Although there is space for amendment, he notes that in the year since labor and management have entered into their joint drug plan, no player requested to undergo testing has refused. "As far as we can tell, our agreement is working--not perfectly, but it's working."

Fehr has a keen and proper concern for the rights of men. "We don't want major league players treated any differently than anybody else in this country," he says. "We don't want them treated any better, but we certainly don't want them treated any worse." On the other hand, Ueberroth has a keen and proper concern for the heroic images of idols admired and emulated by youthful fans. Their game is endangered.