Major League Baseball and its players' association are considering a formal plan for dealing with alcohol-related incidents in the next collective bargaining agreement.

Two baseball officials confirmed the negotiations to The Associated Press on Friday, speaking on condition of anonymity because the talks are considered confidential.

Alcohol use has become a hot-button issue in baseball, following a spate of six drunken-driving incidents this season.

The current CBA, which expires Dec. 11, has provisions for dealing with "drugs of abuse" such as cocaine and marijuana, but does not provide Commissioner Bud Selig with the authority to discipline players for alcohol-related offenses.

Instead, players arrested for DUI and other incidents are typically offered confidential counseling and treatment on a case-by-case basis. According to one baseball official, the league and the players' union simply want to "codify" the current process.

On Monday, Cleveland's Shin-Soo Choo became the latest player arrested when he failed field sobriety tests in Sheffield Lake, Ohio.

Other players involved in alcohol-related incidents this season include Choo's teammate, Austin Kearns; Seattle's Adam Kennedy; Oakland's Coco Crisp; Atlanta's Derek Lowe; and Detroit's Miguel Cabrera.

- The Associated Press