OFF-SPEED PITCH

Players Face A Change Of Pace With New Policy On Stimulants

Big Changes Are Coming In Baseball.

"Coffee sales will be up," San Diego closer Trevor Hoffman said.

"It will be a lot more relaxed," San Francisco manager Felipe Alou
said. "No more playing three weeks in a row," New York Yankees
right-hander Mike Mussina said.

"Greenies" are gone.

Or at least they are supposed to be gone as part of Major League
Baseball's latest drug policy. Without those beloved little
amphetamine pills, the game is about to slow down.

Don't be surprised if an infielder who took a red-eye charter flight
out of California after the previous night's game dozes off during
the seventh inning. Look for sluggish play, especially early in the
season as players adjust to life without "greenies," a name that
comes from the color of the capsule when the drug was originally
introduced to the game.

"Guys who relied on them are going to have to find alternative
solutions," Los Angeles Angels manager Mike Scioscia said.
"Obviously, some players have leaned on them. There have always been
things that players used."

Amphetamines were developed during World War II to help the military
and defense workers prevent fatigue. They seeped into society and
became prevalent in baseball when expansion complicated travel and schedules.

In 1970, amphetamines were made illegal unless obtained by
prescription. That was too late for baseball. By then, greenies were
everywhere in the game.

Players depended on greenies to handle the rigors of cross-country
travel, three-hour day games after three-hour night games, a 162-game
season squeezed into 182 days and a lifestyle that often included
partying until sunrise.

"Amphetamines were not being used for kicks," former major-league
left-hander Bill "Spaceman" Lee wrote in his book The Wrong Stuff.
"They were being used to sober up ... to get the pulse going on the
morning after the night before."

Going without help from chemistry was so rare that a player who did
not use amphetamines was said to be "naked." Better to have a team
full of speed freaks, because the other dugout had a full supply of greenies.

In his book Perfect I'm Not: Boomer on Beer, Brawls, Backaches and
Baseball, Boston Red Sox left-hander David Wells, wrote: "Those
little buggers will open your eyes, sharpen your focus and get your
blood moving on demand over and over again. I won't ever object to a
sleepy-eyed infielder beaning up to help me win."

About Amphetamines THE DEFINITION: Synthesized drugs that stimulate
the central nervous system and can create physical and psychological
dependencies when overused. Used to treat hyperactivity in children,
narcolepsy and attention deficit disorder. Have also been utilized as
an appetite suppressant. "Speed" is common street name.

THE LAW: The federal Controlled Substance Act of 1970 included
amphetamine as a Schedule III drug that has "a potential for abuse
that may lead to moderate or low physical dependence or high
psychological dependence." Penalties for violation of the act can
range from up to one year in prison to terms of 20 years to life and
fines of up to $2 million for continual criminal activity. Good teams
did greenies. In sworn court testimony, World Series winners such as
the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates and 1980 Philadelphia Phillies were said
to be loaded with amphetamine users.

Great players did greenies. Pete Rose, the all-time hits leader, said
in a Playboy interview that he used greenies. During the Pittsburgh
drug trials of the 1980s, Hall of Famers Willie Mays and Willie
Stargell were described as amphetamine providers.

"I don't know what kind of speed it was, but it kept your eyes open,"
John Milner testified about the "red juice" that the legend Mays gave
him when they were with the New York Mets.

That is all supposed to end this season. The drug agreement unveiled
in November included tougher penalties for steroid use and the first
ban of amphetamines.

Greenies and steroids have had markedly different impacts on the
game. According to Dr. Charles Yesalis, a professor of health and
human development at Penn State, steroids enhanced players'
performances while amphetamines enabled players simply to get on the
field and play at their expected level game after game.

"From a business standpoint, you could argue that anabolic steroids
had a far greater effect than amphetamines," Dr. Yesalis said. "It's
the whole 'Chicks dig the long ball' thing. Balls going over fences
and records being broken."

What made amphetamines so damaging, Dr. Yesalis said, is their threat
to players' mental and physical health.

Dr. Yesalis said that if given the choice between taking steroids or
taking amphetamines, he would pick steroids because amphetamines "can
stone-cold kill you." Amphetamine users often get into a damaging
cycle in which they must use barbiturates such as alcohol to come
down from the high of greenies.

The Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers association agreed on the
health risk, said group president and Rangers trainer Jamie Reed, and
pushed for the ban. Commissioner Bud Selig said he was stunned by
what athletic trainers told him about greenies, and their input made
him push for the ban.

Mr. Reed acknowledged that athletic trainers have had to combat the
culture of greenies use being an accepted practice. His group has
tried to educate players on the dangers of amphetamines, but he is
not naive enough to believe there has been complete abstinence.

The Rangers will make their employee-assistance program available to
players who have difficulty dealing with the high psychological
dependence that comes with amphetamine use. Other clubs are expected
to take similar steps.

Dr. Yesalis said there probably will be more mental problems than
physical problems. Some players, he believes, are convinced they
cannot perform without the help of amphetamines.

"With any drug, the physical addiction is never as bad as the mental
addiction," Dr. Yesalis said. "If a guy is partying too much and
can't get his greenies, you can make a good argument that the quality
of his play will diminish."

The practical effect of the ban is expected to be more use of bench
players and a harder time for relievers, some of whom have relied on
a little extra help after sitting for several hours before going into
a game. Anyone who plays in all 162 games will be a true iron man.

Mr. Hoffman, strident in his opposition to using illegal substances
to gain an edge, pointedly said "it will be interesting to see" how
players adjust to not having amphetamines.

His coffee comment was only half in jest. There are usually two
coffee pots in a clubhouse: regular and high test. There is also the
mysterious "Dominican coffee," a sweet and thick liquid that some
players gulp down shortly before game time. Users say the drink
heightens senses so much they can see from the dugout the inscription
on the baseball.

"How about a little mental intensity?" Milwaukee manager Ned Yost
said. "How about substituting some of that if you get tired? Let's
develop it. It's a habit of giving all that you have three hours a night."

Players giving all under the influence of nothing stronger than
strong coffee. It's a new game, and it might be a lesser game.

BASEBALL'S POLICY

FOR TESTING POSITIVE

First violation: Mandatory random testing.

Second violation: 25-game suspension.

Third violation: 80-game suspension.

Fourth violation: Commissioner's option, with lifetime ban subject to
arbitral review.