MLB

Two people familiar with the sport’s Joint Drug Program tell The Associated Press that Major League Baseball has stopped testing players for steroids for the first time in nearly 20 years due to the expiration of the sport’s drug agreement.

David Ortiz was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first turn on the ballot, while steroid-tainted stars Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens were denied entry to Cooperstown in their final year under consideration by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.

Players and owners return to the negotiating table on Monday, hoping to reach an agreement to end the MLB lockout.

Major League Baseball is expanding its automated strike zone experiment to Triple-A, the highest level of the minor leagues.

Talks between Major League Baseball and the players’ union resumed Thursday, the first negotiations since the lockout began in early December.

The New York Yankees are promoting Rachel Balkovec to manager of the Low A Tampa Tarpons, making her the first woman to skipper a team affiliated with Major League Baseball.

The 1994-95 players strike halted MLB’s season long before many current Major League Baseball players were born. But the current generation of baseball players could be mere weeks from experiencing a work stoppage firsthand.