Talks Off Because of Drug Tests

Negotiations for a new labor agreement between baseball’s club owners and players will not resume as scheduled Friday because of a dispute over mandatory drug-testing.

The Major League Players Assn. said Wednesday that a move by the Dodgers to provide for such testing in the contracts of some players is clearly illegal under previous agreements between owners and players. The association canceled Friday’s negotiating session.

Instead of the scheduled meeting, some members of the union’s bargaining team plan to meet with management to receive an explanation of the Dodgers’ action.

The union learned last weekend that the drug-testing clause had become part of some contracts. A Dodger source said that two players, Bill Russell and Mike Marshall, already had agreed to it.

Baseball’s basic labor agreement expired Dec. 31, but no negotiations have been held since Dec. 19. and now may not resume until spring.

The negotiations were first suspended two weeks ago after the players union objected to comments made by Houston Astros owner John Mullen, who in effect said that union leaders had too much control over the players. The management committee later made a statement that Mullen’s views do not reflect those of management in general, and the negotiations had been scheduled to resume Friday.