Baseball owners and players agreed Friday on a revised drug program that grants amnesty to all players cited in the Mitchell Report as users of performance-enhancing substances.
"It is time for the game to move forward," Commissioner Bud Selig said in a statement. "There is little to be gained at this point in debating dated misconduct and enduring numerous disciplinary proceedings."
The amnesty covers Jose Guillen of the Kansas City Royals and Jay Gibbons, released last month by the Baltimore Orioles. The 15-day suspension for each player, imposed in December and stayed pending the new agreement, has been waived.
Selig had wanted to impose some punishment, even if limited to fines, against the active players named in the Mitchell Report. He backed down after the players' union agreed to donate $200,000 to anti-drug programs and agreed that players, including those cited by Mitchell, would join in drug education efforts.
In negotiations, according to two sources describing confidential discussions on condition of anonymity, the union told the owners it would not consent to an agreement billed as implementing Mitchell's recommendations when Mitchell had recommended no punishment for the players he named.
Selig pointedly reserved the right to fine club officials not represented by the union, saying "any fines imposed on management personnel for conduct described in the Mitchell Report" would be donated to two anti-drug organizations.
Selig told Congress in January that he would investigate the San Francisco Giants, with the Mitchell Report alleging that owner Peter Magowan and General Manager Brian Sabean failed to follow up when athletic trainer Stan Conte reported that Greg Anderson, the personal trainer for Barry Bonds, might be distributing steroids in the clubhouse.
"It is possible the BALCO scandal could have been averted if Brian Sabean and Peter Magowan acted in a responsible fashion," Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Beverly Hills) said during that congressional hearing. "Instead they seemed more intent on protecting Barry Bonds."
Waxman and Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.), the top Republican on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, issued a statement saying they "look forward to reviewing the details of the agreement."
