Selig backs federal legislation

around the horn

Baseball commissioner Bud Selig said Monday he would support federal legislation calling for two-year bans for first-time steroid offenses unless the Major League Baseball Players Association agrees to toughen the sport’s drug policy.

Selig proposed last month that starting in 2006, major league players be given 50-game suspensions for a first positive test for steroids, a 100-game penalty for a second positive test and a lifetime ban for a third. He also wants to ban amphetamines, which currently are not penalized under the major league policy.

The players’ association said it will discuss the proposal with management representatives. Baseball’s current steroids policy, agreed to in January, runs through the 2008 season.

Rep. Cliff Stearns, a Florida Republican, proposed “The Drug Free Sports Act” last month calling for penalties similar to the ones in the World Anti-Doping Agency code adopted by many Olympic sports: two years for a first offense and a lifetime ban for a second.

Clearing the bases

Cubs right-hander Carlos Zambrano had an MRI on his sore elbow and the team is unsure if he will make his next start. … The Devil Rays placed right-hander Dewon Brazelton on the restricted list after he failed to report to Triple-A Durham. … Charlie Muse, a longtime Pittsburgh Pirates executive who created baseball’s modern batting helmet, has died at the age of 87 in Sun City Center, Fla. … Former Red Sox right-hander Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd made his first appearance since 1997, pitching three scoreless innings for the Can-Am independent league Brockton (Mass.) Rox against the Worcester (Mass.) Tornadoes.