The testing procedures approved with the new agreement are significantly different from those of the previous one. The 2002 agreement, baseball’s first swing at steroid use, was set in motion for the 2003 season. The agreement called for testing half of the players during spring training. The other half of the players were to be tested during the regular season. If five percent of the players tested positive during the first test, random testing would be implemented for the 2004 season. If less than 2.5 percent tested positive, random testing would cease. (Staudohar, 2005)
Players basically knew when they would be tested. If they were tested during spring training, they knew they would not be tested again for the rest of the season. This system opened the door to the use of banned substances for the entire season. The players not tested during spring training knew they would be tested during the regular season at some point. Most were tested during the first half of the season and were able to pick up their use for the remainder of the season without fear of being caught. Those who did test positive received referrals to a treatment program for a first time offense. (Staudohar, 2005)
The new regimen called for increased random testing that was to occur throughout the year. Every player on a major league 40-man roster is subjected to at least one random test during the regular season. Random testing during the off season was also approved for the first time. This was a big change for the players who had not previously been subjected to testing during the off season. (Staudohar, 2005)