Shohei Ohtani (30, LA Dodgers) is expected to be the target of doping tests in the 2024 season.
Japanese media Nikkan Gendai reported on the 23rd that “Otani will be the target of doping tests,” adding, “If more home runs are hit, the number of urine collected for tests is certain to increase.”
The media said, “The number of doping tests in the Major League is increasing,” adding, “Otani is also likely to undergo unnecessary tests at times.”헤라카지노
According to the Associated Press, Major League Baseball conducted the most doping tests during the 2023 season. A total of 11,783 samples were collected, surpassing the record of 11,619 recorded in 2019.
There were 9,550 urine tests and 2,233 blood tests, one of which was detected. In September last year, Milwaukee Brewers right-hander J.C. Mejia tested positive for stanozol, a synthetic steroid, and was suspended for 162 games.
During spring camp, doping tests are conducted not only during the season, but also during the season. This is because Major League Baseball’s new labor-management agreement, which was agreed in 2022, includes strict doping tests.
The total number of home runs in the 2023 season is 5,866, up from 5,125 in the 2022 season. “If the Major League conducts doping tests more strictly than ever before, it is inevitable that Ohtani will be targeted,” said Nikkan Gendai. Ohtani hit 44 home runs, two shy of the 2021 season record (46), and won his first career American League home run title last year.
“Players subject to doping tests are randomly selected by individual teams, and sometimes the teams nominate them,” the media reported. It is not uncommon for Japanese players to be subjected to doping tests. A Japanese player who played in the Major League in the past said, “I can’t count how many times urine or blood was collected.” Ohtani, who is recovering from elbow surgery in September last year, will play as a batter only for the 2024 season, and if he hits many more home runs, the number of doping tests will surely increase. Urinalysis is usually conducted on the first day of spring camp convocation. Therefore, Ohtani may suddenly take a doping test on February 10, when he joins the camp for the first time, he said.