By Michael S. Schmidt, New York Times | September 12, 2007

When representatives from Major League Baseball met with members of the Albany, N.Y., district attorney's office Monday they were looking to get a better handle on the investigation into an extensive prescription-drug distribution ring, a probe that already has seen a number of major league players linked to the purchase of performance-enhancing drugs.

Whether baseball can establish a working relationship with the investigators remains to be seen. What is almost certain is that more names of major leaguers are going to be disclosed in connection with the case. One person who has been briefed on the situation said baseball expects the names of perhaps 10 more players to emerge as the investigation continues to unfold.

Over the last week, news reports have linked Rick Ankiel, Troy Glaus, and Jay Gibbons to shipments of human growth hormone and steroids. The disclosures, like ones earlier this year, have caught baseball flat-footed and forced it to launch an internal investigation every time a name surfaces. If the names of 10 more players are indeed in the pipeline, baseball would clearly prefer to know who those players are and be able to cooperate in the investigation of their activities rather than have to again react when the names inevitably leak out.

In contrast to baseball, the NFL has established a working relationship with the Albany district attorney's office since the drug investigation came to light in February.