His 462 home runs have been trumped by 30 men in Major League Baseball history, and no player ? not Babe Ruth, not Ty Cobb, not Hank Aaron ? was good enough to hit 40 home runs and steal 40 bases in the same season before he put on a major league uniform.
During the prime of his career, he was brash, arrogant, cocky ? all the prerequisites for a superstar not named Cal Ripken. He could hit a baseball farther than perhaps any player who ever swung a bat and was hated or loved ? depending on the city.
Jose Canseco has been called a lot of names, so add this to the list: Hall of Famer. That?s right, Hall of Famer.
The guy was probably filled with more drugs than a Walgreens pharmacy, and his breakfast of champions was in a syringe. But he now shares a common bond with former Sen. George Mitchell?s? list of 85 greats, but with one clear distinction.
He hit it out of the park by telling the truth. Those 84 others can?t handle the truth.
Before Thursday, guys like Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte were all destined for enshrinement in Cooperstown and the same goes for Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire and Rafael Palmeiro. Who in the name of Pete Rose would take those bets now?
Hall of Fame voters, take a hard look at Canseco: He?s the most honest man in baseball.
Without his book, “Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant ?Roids, Smash Hits & How Baseball Got Big,” there would be no congressional hearing. Without the congressional hearing, there would be no Mitchell Report. Without a Mitchell Report, 85 former and current players, including 19 dirty Birds, would still have halos above their heads.
He claimed Mark McGwire, Jason Giambi, Rafael Palmeiro, Ivan Rodriguez and Juan Gonzalez all used steroids and everybody laughed at him. Who?s laughing now?
Jose Canseco is what Sherron Watkins was to Enron, Cynthia Cooper was to WorldCom and Coleen Rowley was to the FBI. All three graced the cover as Time?s People of the Year in 2002 ? and Canseco is the poster boy for what?s wrong with baseball?
He?s the Linda Tripp of baseball. Instead of don?t ask, don?t tell, he essentially grabbed a megaphone, strode to home plate and told everyone that a pastime rooted in red, white and blue has as much to do with the colors cream, clear and good ol? green.
And how was he treated in New York when the Mitchell Report was released? He was ignored, a footnote who most want to forget. Somewhere down the line, turning on friends and telling the truth became a greater sin than cheating. Witness New York Jets coach Eric Mangini blowing the whistle on the untouchable Bill Belichick of the Patriots. Mangini gets lambasted for going public and telling a rival coach to play by the rules. Video cheating apparently is an acceptable white lie.
Canseco gets in because he?s the ultimate whistleblower, which is more impressive than being the 1988 American League Most Valuable Player.
He had the guts to say, albeit years after, what most were thinking when Brady Anderson ? yes, that Brady Anderson ? was smacking balls out of the ballpark like he was playing Nintendo RBI Baseball.
Nobody likes whistle-blowers. But baseball needs more bash brothers like Canseco. His statistics during a career that spanned from 1985 to 2001 have him knocking on Cooperstown?s door, but it?s the way he?s impacted the game after he retired that forces baseball to open it for him.
Jon Gallo is the Sports Editor of The Examiner. He can be reached at [email protected]
