KBO TO BEGIN TESTING FOREIGN PLAYERS FOR DRUGS

The Korea Baseball Organization has announced it will begin testing its foreign players for banned substances. According to the JoongAng Daily, the KBO did not say when the testing would begin or how often it would take place.


Although the KBO has never tested import players, the league began testing domestic players in 2007. It conducted a random urine test of three players from each of the league’s eight teams in 2007, and did the same twice last year for a total of 72 players tested in a two-year period. The KBO claims none of the players tested positive for any performance-enhancing drugs, but they are planning to increase the number of domestic players tested to five per team while upping the frequency of tests during the season to three.

One past KBO star whose name comes up when the use of steroids is discussed is former Doosan Bears pitcher Daniel Rios. Rios regularly reached double-figure win totals before exploding for a 22-5 record and a 2.07 ERA in his MVP season of 2007. Rios signed with Japan’s Yakult Swallows for 2008, but was released in June of last year upon being suspended by Nippon Professional Baseball after testing positive for anabolic steroids.