Former Sen. George Mitchell's report on the use of performance-enhancing drugs in baseball will be made public today, ending 21 months of speculation about the names and details contained in its pages.
Mitchell, who was appointed by Commissioner Bud Selig to lead the investigation, will discuss his findings at a news conference in midtown Manhattan, set to start at 11 a.m. PST. Two-and-a-half hours later, Selig will hold his own news conference less than a mile away.
Anywhere from 60 to 80 players linked to drugs will be named in the 300-plus-page report, among them former MVPs and All-Stars, according to the Associated Press. Angels owner Arte Moreno told The Times last month that the report would name players "that people will be mad about."
Various reports said the document would indicate that baseball has a widespread drug problem and would make recommendations about testing.
Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti said Wednesday that he did not dread the disclosure of Mitchell's findings, adding, "I think that integrity needs to be part of the game."
But agent Scott Boras, who represents numerous high-profile players, argued that baseball's definition of integrity is constantly changing.
"The integrity of baseball, or any sport, is defined by the rules that are set by the governance of the sport on both sides," Boras said, referring to the owners and the players' union.
Boras noted that because current drug-testing policy was set in 2005, "to make judgments on players and their conduct prior to 2005 is something we have to look very, very closely at. Certainly, players don't deserve scrutiny doing something that was legal and in line with the integrity and the rules of baseball, and federal and state law."
Human growth hormone was not banned or subject to penalty until 2005.
Boras said he hadn't read the document but expressed skepticism of its merits because "the concerns of due process and the standards that apply to it are relatively unknown. Certainly, any results that occur from the report have to be looked at in the light that this is not a collectively bargained effort."
A source told The Times on Tuesday that the commissioner's office was reviewing the document in part to ensure that releasing its contents would not violate the collective-bargaining agreement.
