Ex-minor leaguer could sue MLB

NEW YORK (Ticker) - Major League Baseball could face a class-action lawsuit from former minor leaguers who believe they were denied a fair shot at making the majors because of steroids in the game.

Ex-St. Louis Cardinals farmhand Rich Hartmann told the New York Daily News he is considering filing the lawsuit, and has support from former teammates.

“Was I cheated of my dreams of a big-league career?” Hartmann said in Sunday’s Daily News. “I don’t know. But I do know there were thousands of guys who were right on the doorstep between 1990 and 2005 and they were cheated because they didn’t use steroids.”

Hartmann, now a 35-year-old New York banker, was a 26th-round draft choice of the Cardinals in 1994. He impressed at Class A level but lasted only a couple of seasons before he quit after an arm injury.

Although he never made it close to the majors, he still feels he was denied a chance to move through the minor leagues and show what he could do.

“There can be such a thin line between who makes it to the major leagues and who doesn’t,” Hartmann said. “I felt like I lost my opportunity to prove I was that good.”

Last month, former Senator George Mitchell said use of performance-enhancing substances had been “widespread” in the game. His report also spoke to Hartmann’s concerns.

“Widespread use by players of such substances unfairly disadvantages the honest athletes who refuse to use them and raises questions about the validity of baseball records,” Mitchell wrote.