Mets Star Gooden Will Enter Drug Treatment Program

Star pitcher Dwight Gooden of the New York Mets, threatened with suspension by Commissioner Peter Ueberroth, agreed today to enter a treatment program for a “drug-use problem,” the team announced.

Gooden, the National League Cy Young Award winner two seasons ago, was placed on the disabled list and the team said there was no indication when he might return.

Ueberroth had told the team that he would suspend the 21-year-old all-star pitcher unless he underwent treatment, the Mets said. The team declined to say what drugs were involved.

Rumors about Gooden and drugs began circulating last season, when his record dropped from 24-4 in his Cy Young season to 17-6 and his earned run average rose from 1.53 to 2.84. Last Dec. 13, he and several friends were arrested in his hometown of Tampa, Fla., over a scuffle with police.