March 2 (Bloomberg) -- A federal appeals court ordered prosecutors and baseball player Barry Bonds’s lawyers to file legal arguments by this summer on a judge’s ruling that may keep evidence in Bonds’s perjury trial from being introduced.

The U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco said in a filing today it’s expediting the government’s appeal of the ruling. The judge barred positive drug tests and other evidence unless they are supported by testimony from Greg Anderson, Bonds’s former trainer, who has refused to be a witness.

Government lawyers must file arguments for overturning the ruling by June 1. Bonds’s lawyers must respond by July 1. A hearing on the arguments and a decision are to follow.

Bonds is accused of lying to a federal grand jury about taking steroids. The trial scheduled to begin tomorrow was postponed after government lawyers notified U.S. District Judge Susan Illston that they would appeal her Feb. 19 ruling that only Anderson can link the drug tests to Bonds.

Federal prosecutors have argued that at least one other witness will testify that Anderson confirmed he obtained Bonds’s urine and blood samples that were used in the tests.

The testimony shouldn’t be excluded as hearsay because statements made by employees on behalf of their employers are exempt from the rule against second-hand testimony, prosecutors said in court papers.

Bonds is facing 10 counts of perjury and one of obstruction of justice over accusations he lied about taking steroids obtained from Anderson. The ballplayer has denied knowingly taking performance-enhancing drugs. He said Anderson gave him substances saying they were legal, according to court records.

Bonds, 44, played for the San Francisco Giants through the 2007 season. He holds the Major League Baseball records for home runs in a career and a single season.

The case is U.S. v. Bonds, 07-732, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco).

To contact the reporter on this story: Karen Gullo in San Francisco at kgullo@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: March 2, 2009 14:12 EST