Arbitrator: MLB can't punish Josh Hamilton

— -- NEW YORK -- Los Angeles Angels outfielder Josh Hamilton cannot be disciplined by Major League Baseball for his latest problems involving alcohol and a drug of abuse, an arbitrator ruled Friday.

MLB said it disagreed with the decision made by an arbitrator appointed under its joint drug program with the players' association. MLB said in a statement it "will seek to address deficiencies in the manner in which drugs of abuse are addressed under the program in the collective-bargaining process."

Angels team president John Carpino sided with MLB and was upset that the league is unable to take any steps to reprimand Hamilton.

"It defies logic that Josh's reported behavior is not a violation of his drug program," Carpino said Friday afternoon.

"Do I agree with the decision that was made by the treatment board? Absolutely not," Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto said before the team's exhibition game against the Dodgers.

Hamilton, the 2010 AL MVP, is subject to the treatment program for prior violations involving drugs of abuse.

The five-time All-Star, who signed a five-year, $125 million contract with the Angels in December 2012, self-reported a violation this year after he suffered a relapse involving the use of cocaine and alcohol in the offseason, according to an ESPN source and media reports. He met with MLB officials in New York in early March as a precursor to possible disciplinary action.

MLB said it took "the position that Hamilton violated his treatment program and is subject to discipline by the commissioner."

A four-person treatment board created by baseball's joint drug program, which includes one lawyer and one medical representative each appointed by management and the players' association, deadlocked 2-2 on whether Hamilton should be disciplined. That caused the need for an arbitrator to break the tie.

The arbitrator said only that Hamilton was not subject to discipline and did not give reasons for the decision, the person familiar with the case told The Associated Press.

Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto issued a statement Friday saying that, while the team is disappointed in Hamilton's conduct, it'll try to help him moving forward.

"The Angels have serious concerns about Josh's conduct, health and behavior and we are disappointed that he has broken an important commitment which he made to himself, his family, his teammates and our fans," Dipoto said in a statement. "We are going to do everything possible to assure he receives proper help for himself and for the well-being of his family."

The Major League Baseball Players Association said in a statement that it will "respect the integrity of the negotiated joint drug agreement process and protocols, as well as any decisions that are the result of that process."

Hamilton, who turns 34 in May, has a well-documented history of substance-abuse problems dating to his days in the minor leagues, when he was suspended from baseball from February 2004 to June 2006 for issues related to cocaine and alcohol addiction.

"We've really got to get Josh the help that he needs," Carpino said. "That's where the focus is. We're dealing with a person here."

One of the conditions of Hamilton's reinstatement in 2006 was that he undergo drug testing three times a week. He had alcohol relapses in 2009 and 2012 but recovered to win the MVP award with the Texas Rangers in 2010 and appear in consecutive World Series in 2010 and 2011.

Hamilton played in just 89 games for the Angels because of injuries and struggled at the plate throughout last season, culminating in an 0-for-13 performance in the Angels' three-game loss to Kansas City in the AL Division Series. After resting his ailing right shoulder throughout the offseason, he had surgery in February that will prevent him from playing until at least May.

Hamilton has managed just 31 homers and 123 RBIs in two seasons with the Angels.

Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com and The Associated Press contributed to this report.