Issue has plenty of juice
Canseco says steroid talk not going away
Jose Canseco is living in Southern California, pursuing an acting career and trying to get funding for the movie adaptation of his best-selling book "Juiced," which blew the lid off baseball's steroid problem. He helped expose baseball's dark, dirty secret by admitting he took steroids and divulging the names of those he says he saw take them, and now feels a great detachment to the game.
Not many baseball people thanked him for coming clean, and many players looked at him with great disdain. Nevertheless, Canseco said he is rooting for Barry Bonds to break Hank Aaron's all-time home run mark, feeling Bonds is entitled to the achievement -- steroids or no steroids.
Without Canseco's revelations, steroid use in baseball might still be a side story and extensive testing might never have occurred.
"I know what steroids can do for a player," said Canseco, who spent 17 years in the majors. "I also know that it doesn't help you be a great athlete or help out with the extraordinary hand-eye coordination Barry Bonds has. Steroids can have different benefits for different people. For me, it helped me stand up straight after all the problems I had with my back after some back surgeries. It helped with longevity and recovery from injury as well as strength, but I'm telling you it doesn't make you a better athlete and it doesn't help you hit the ball."
Canseco, who played for the Red Sox in 1995 and '96, finishing with 52 homers and 163 RBIs in 756 at-bats, believes Bonds's feat should stand the test of time because of the era he played in.
"You can call it the steroids era or whatever you want to call it," said Canseco. "I stand by what I wrote in the book and what I've contended all along -- that 80 to 85 percent of all players were on steroids in the 1980s and '90s. The playing field was equal, and in that playing field Barry Bonds was the best of the best."
Canseco said he's received a lot of interest but no commitment to make the movie based on his book When it was suggested he should ask Red Sox chairman Tom Werner to invest in the project, Canseco laughed and said, "That would be interesting, a baseball owner doing a movie about the steroid problem in baseball."
Canseco said he's never received a thank you from anyone in baseball's hierarchy or from Congress for bringing the steroid issue to the forefront, nor did he expect it. He's a bit surprised he's had only a brief meeting with former Senator George Mitchell, who is conducting Major League Baseball's investigation into steroids in the game, and he has not spoken to any of Mitchell's lawyers who are conducting the interviews.
"I honestly don't know what they have and what they don't have," Canseco said. "I don't know how far into their investigation they are. I know what I know and what I saw, which is what I wrote in the book. I never made claims that I didn't see or have knowledge of firsthand. I think the movie will be an awakening for a lot of people who are maybe still unaware of the extent of the problem in major league baseball. If they want me to tell them those things I would, but I haven't been asked."
Canseco is not a fan of commissioner Bud Selig, feeling he "perpetuated the problem by turning his head to it" for a long time. Canseco feels baseball needs new leadership, and believes Selig will be present when Bonds breaks the record.
"I just remember back to the congressional hearings when Mr. Selig told Congress that the sport didn't need another black eye," said Canseco. "Well, if he doesn't acknowledge Barry's record by being present, it just magnifies it even more."
The 44-year-old Canseco, who hit 462 home runs and knocked in 1,407 runs in 7,057 at-bats, believes he was blackballed from baseball, and if he wasn't, "I'd have close to 700 home runs."
Canseco is involved in martial arts, which he says "have me in the best shape of my life." He's been on a couple of reality TV shows and hopes to pursue acting further, but right now most of his energies are devoted to getting investors for his movie. He also has a second book idea that he said "could get written quickly," but he's put that on hold.
Canseco said he wouldn't be surprised if many players were still using performance enhancers, but he doesn't know for sure. What he does know is that months and years have passed and he still hears about steroids on a daily basis. The topic he brought to the forefront isn't going away any time soon.
"It's a topic that's definitely in the minds of many people who follow sports, not just baseball," he said. "Until they find out who did it and who didn't do it, and I doubt they'll ever know all of it, it's going to be out there for people to discuss and form opinions on it."
They'll sink or swim with him
A few questions for new Mariners manager John McLaren:
When I spoke with you in spring training, you were starting as the bench coach under Mike Hargrove and you said, 'Don't write this team off. If you're making your preseason picks, don't rule out us making the playoffs.' Looks like you were right.
JM: "I guess what I was impressed with is the way the players went about their work and how finishing last for three years in a row wasn't acceptable to them. That's what impressed me. I remember saying to guys, 'Why not us? Why can't we win this year, right now?' That's the attitude they've taken."
Taking over for Hargrove under such extraordinary circumstances, is there a certain stamp you want to put on this team?
JM: "I don't want to change too much of what Mike put in place because our team was responding to what he was doing. The only thing I might do more of is running, just try to make more things happen on the base paths. I learned that aggressive style from being around Lou Piniella for 14 years. Don't be afraid to get thrown out once in a while in order for a bigger reward. I think it's fun to play the game that way and the players enjoy that brand of ball as well."
A lot of people think Ichiro Suzuki's long-term deal is tied in somewhat to knowing you'll be the manager here. What's your take on Ichiro?
JM: "You're not going to find a more unique player with the skill set he has anywhere in the game. In the years I was in Boston I got to watch Roger Clemens behind the scenes and I would compare Ichiro very much to Roger in that I've never seen two guys prepare more to compete than these two guys."
Have you had any further contact with Hargrove?
JM: "I spoke to Mike during the All-Star break and he's fine. I tried to talk him out of [resigning] a day before he announced it, but he was set in what he wanted to do. He's a class act. I appreciate everything he did for this organization and our team, but I knew there was something eating at him all season to the point where I asked him to talk about it and open up to his coaching staff and he didn't do it. He kept saying everything was all right and I knew it wasn't."
Financial experts gauge what would be a large money market
Nobody creates a market better than agent Scott Boras. Well, the Hendricks brothers aren't bad either, brokering Roger Clemens's contract with the Yankees. So, we asked three experts -- two general managers and one agent, how big will the market be for Alex Rodriguez, a Boras client, if he opts out of his contract with the Yankees after the season, becoming a free agent ?
Agent: "If the market Scott wants to create results in a yield of an average annual salary of $30 million-$35 million, he's succeeded. It doesn't matter how many teams are involved. With that type of money it's not going to be more than two or three teams, and it's obvious which ones they are."
Which teams will be in the running?
GM 1: "New York and Boston. The Yankees don't want to lose the best player in baseball. Boston has the money to throw around and would love to take him away from New York, especially considering they have a free agent third baseman [Mike Lowell]. They are the two teams who can devote that much of their payroll toward one player. If you're asking how many teams would want A-Rod, I'd say every team. But then you can start to whittle it down."
GM 2: "I don't even think Boston would do it. There might be a big-market team looking for a splash and A-Rod would create that splash."
Any surprise teams?
GM 2: "San Francisco. You figure, no Barry Bonds if he wants to DH. I don't see a rebuilding program in that market, so they will need to spend some money. If the Angels and Dodgers don't do well in the postseason, maybe, but neither of those teams are prone to spending that kind of money. Both Chicago teams maybe, [White Sox and Bulls owner] Jerry Reinsdorf gave Michael Jordan $25 million, didn't he? But with his baseball players he's a little different. The Cubs have spent a ton already and with new ownership coming in, I don't envision it."
GM 1: "There's always that out-of-the-blue team. The Mariners? A-Rod played there and loved it there. Baltimore? It wouldn't be [director of baseball operations] Andy MacPhail's way, but [owner] Peter Angelos might feel he needs to do something huge. Don't forget, we're talking one-third of a team's payroll, if that team is spending between $90 million and $100 million on payroll. The Yankees and Red Sox are the teams that could afford it most."
Agent: "In the end, it makes the most sense for the Yankees to rework it. The only thing working against the Yankees would be whether A-Rod wants out of Dodge. I don't think he does. He'll get his $30 million-plus. The Yankees will pay it because they can. Because they're losing a contract or two and because their new stadium will pay for the contract, and then some. Otherwise, nobody can afford that."
Etc.
Touching the bases
Apropos of nothing: 1. I think Carl Crawford is one of those very good players who will spend the bulk of his career playing for nothing; 2. Baseball scribe Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger is out with his second novel: "The Ultimatum," the story of a guy whose girlfriend of six years suddenly gives him one week to propose or she's leaving him. Sounds like a Scott Boras negotiation; 3. Too bad Rich Harden keeps landing on the disabled list. I think he would have been with the Red Sox by now; 4. You don't have to convince me Rickey Henderson loves baseball. The Mets' new first base coach would still like to play, even at the age of 48 ; 5. Talk is getting stronger among scouts that the Reds might deal Bronson Arroyo. Wonder if the Red Sox will offer Wily Mo Peña.
No masking the problem
A major league source said the Braves have had an avalanche of calls concerning the availability of 22-year-old catcher/first baseman Jarrod Saltalamacchia. The lack of catching talent is a growing problem around baseball. The Red Sox, who have traded away Josh Bard (and Cla Meredith for Doug Mirabelli) and Kelly Shoppach (along with Guillermo Mota and Andy Marte for Coco Crisp, Bard, and David Riske) the last two years are in critical condition at this position in the high minor leagues, though they have hopes for Mark Wagner, Jon Still, Ty Weeden, and Dusty Brown. Last season was a prime example of what can happen when Jason Varitek goes down. Nothing good. The Sox have tried to solve the problem, but George Kottaras, obtained from the Padres for David Wells, has struggled offensively and defensively at Triple A. The Sox need to find a catcher, and may have to trade a pitching prospect to do it.
Decision '07
PawSox president Mike Tamburro is heading the search committee to find a new minor league president to replace the retiring Mike Moore, who served for 16 years. Tamburro said those who feel they are qualified should contact him at P.O. Box 2365, Pawtucket, RI, 02861. Tamburro said a list of candidates will be sent to the board of trustees by late September, and a president will be elected at the winter meetings in Nashville in December.
