MLB considers ban of chewing tobacco

Chewing tobacco, forever a staple of the baseball scene, could be subject to a major-league ban as the result of yesterday's congressional hearings citing the habit's health hazards and influence on youth.

After testimony before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, MLB and union officials said they were willing to discuss such a prohibition during the next round of collective bargaining after the contract expires in December 2011.

But David Prouty, chief labor counsel for the Major League Baseball Players Association, first argued that baseball players "should not be prohibited from using substances that are perfectly legal and available to the general public."

Committee chairman Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) countered that "we don't let baseball players go stand out in the field and drink beer. The MLB Association won't let them stand out there and smoke cigarettes."

"Good luck," Giants reliever Brandon Medders told The Associated Press. "Guys do what they do. We work outside. It's been part of the game for 100 years."

Chewing tobacco has been linked to cancer of the mouth, tongue and throat, as well as contributing to gum disease and tooth decay. In 1993, MLB prohibited the use of tobacco products throughout the minor-league system but not in the majors.

Former catcher and television announcer Joe Garagiola has campaigned for years against the use of smokeless tobacco. He told the committee, "Like many generations of major-league players, I started using spit tobacco because I saw other players doing it and I thought it was part of being a major-league player. This is a dangerous, deadly habit."

Harvard professor Gregory Connolly said about one-third of big leaguers chew tobacco, and he expressed concern that young fans subliminally are disposed to copy their heroes' habit. Gruen Von Behrens testified that he mimicked big leaguers' chewing ritual as a teenager, necessitating a series of 34 surgeries that left his lower face badly disfigured.

"I'm sure there are kids out there who see it on TV," Yankees designated hitter Nick Johnson said before yesterday's game at Yankee Stadium. "I know it's not good. I need to stop. I do have a lot of people telling me - kids, family."

Johnson's teammate Nick Swisher expressed doubt about the connection between major leaguers and kids chewing.

"I think it's an individual thing," Swisher said. "You're talking about grown people, grown men. But then again, I can understand it . . . you know, people just trying to get healthy. It's a bad habit. I have to stop."

With Kimberley A. Martin