"Alex can speak for himself," Fehr said. "I don't. Obviously, whenever you have stories like this that come out, it isn't good. On the other hand, I hope that people would recognize the following - and actually think most people do and most fans do - that what's come out in one sense is very old news. It occurred six, seven, eight years ago. It was prior to the time of the testing program. There are no suggestions or any meaningful reasons to believe the testing we have in place now has not remarkably reduced the unlawful drugs."

Fehr also said the union would consider a test for human growth hormone.

"If someone comes out with a valid test which works, we'll take a look at it," he said.

Fehr said it is to soon to tell how much baseball will be affected by the economic downturn.

"Traditionally, baseball has been resistant to recessions," he said. "I think anybody who tries to make predictions in the climate the country has been living through probably ought to think twice about whether he wants to make a prediction. I think we'll just wait and see."

Fehr expects this year's World Baseball Classic to be a success, and said it's likely the event will be held again in 2013. He said MLB and the union will continue to explore playing games overseas.