José Canseco Capas Jr. (born July 2, 1964) is a Cuban-American former professional baseball outfielder and designated hitter who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). During his time with the Oakland Athletics, he established himself as one of the premier power hitters in the game. He won the Rookie of the Year (1986), and Most Valuable Player award (1988), and was a six-time All-Star. Canseco is a two-time World Series champion with the Oakland Athletics (1989) and the New York Yankees (2000).
In 1988, Canseco became the first player in MLB history to hit 40 home runs and steal 40 bases in one season. He won the Silver Slugger Award four times: three as an American League (AL) outfielder (1988, 1990, 1991), and once as a designated hitter (1998). He ranks fourth all-time in Athletics history with 254 home runs and is one of 14 players in MLB history with 400 home runs and 200 stolen bases. Despite many injuries during the later part of his career, Canseco averaged 40 home runs, 120 runs batted in, and 102 runs scored every 162 games, playing a total of 1,887 games in 17 seasons with seven different teams. His 462 career home runs are the 12th-highest total in AL history and the 2nd most in MLB history for a player with less than 2,000 games played. For the length of his career (1985-2001) Canseco had the 3rd most home runs in all of Major League Baseball, behind only Mark McGwire (583) and Barry Bonds (567). He is the 7th lowest drafted player (15th round, 392nd pick in 1982) in MLB history ever to win an MVP Award. From the day of his debut until his last game in MLB (September 5, 1985, until his last career game on October 6, 2001), no one hit more home runs in the American League than Canseco.
Canseco admitted using performance-enhancing drugs during his major-league playing career, and in 2005 wrote a tell-all book, Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant 'Roids, Smash Hits & How Baseball Got Big, in which he said that the vast majority of MLB players use steroids. After retiring from MLB, he also competed in boxing and mixed martial arts.
Early life Canseco was born in Havana, Cuba, the son of José Sr. and Barbara Canseco. His father was Cuban while his mother was half-Cuban and half-Filipino. He has a twin brother, Ozzie Canseco, who is also a former major league player. When Fidel Castro came into power in 1959, José Sr., a territory manager for the oil and gasoline corporation Esso as well as a part-time English teacher, lost his job and eventually his home. The family was allowed to leave Cuba in 1965, when the twins were barely one year old, and settled in the Miami area, where José Sr. became a territory manager for another oil and gasoline company, Amoco.
Canseco played baseball at Miami Coral Park High School, where he failed to make the varsity team until his senior year. He was named Most Valuable Player of the junior varsity team in his junior year and of the varsity team the following year. He graduated in 1982.
Baseball career Minor League Baseball (1982–1985) The Oakland Athletics drafted Canseco in the 15th round of the 1982 Major League Baseball draft. He made his professional baseball debut with the Miami Marlins of the Florida State League and also played Minor League Baseball with the Medford A's, Madison Muskies, Idaho Falls A's, Modesto A's, and Tacoma Tigers. Canseco started the 1985 season with the Class-AA Huntsville Stars and became known as "Parkway José" for his long home runs (25 in half a season) that went close to the Memorial Parkway behind Joe Davis Stadium. Canseco was nicknamed "The Natural", with some analysts saying he was the best prospect since Willie Mays. Oakland A's hitting coach Bob Watson said that Canseco was a mixture of Roberto Clemente, Dale Murphy, and Reggie Jackson. Others touted Canseco as the next Mickey Mantle.
Major League Baseball (1985–2001)
Oakland Athletics (1985–1992) In 1985, Canseco won the Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year Award, and was a late "September call-up" for the Oakland Athletics. He made his Major League debut on September 2, striking out in his one at-bat against the Baltimore Orioles. His first hit was off Ron Guidry of the New York Yankees on September 7, and his first home run was off Jeff Russell of the Texas Rangers on September 9. He played in 29 games in the major leagues in 1985, batting .302 with 5 home runs and 13 RBIs in 96 at-bats. He was named Player of the Week from September 23 to 29 with a .481 BA (13 for 27), 3 HRs, and 7 RBIs in 7 games. He played both left and right field in 26 games and made 3 errors in 61 chances, with 56 putouts, 2 assists, and 1 double play. On September 26, he played 3 innings in center field, in his only career appearance in that position. For the entire 1985 year (AA, AAA, and Major League level combined), Canseco had a .330 batting average with 41 home runs, 140 runs batted in, 73 extra base hits, 336 total bases, and a .622 slugging percentage.
After being named Minor League Baseball Player of the Year and a good September call-up the prior year, Canseco was the favorite to win the American League's Rookie of the Year Award in 1986. He batted either fifth or third in the lineup and he established himself that year in his first full season as the starting left fielder for the Athletics. By the All-Star break he was leading the American League in home runs (23) and runs batted in (78) and was selected as a backup outfielder for the All-Star Game by manager Dick Howser, although he did not see any playing time in the game. An 0-for-34 batting slump in August prevented him from winning the RBI crown, finishing with 117, four fewer than league leader Joe Carter. He led the league in outfielder errors with 14 and was third with 175 strikeouts. Nonetheless, his 33 home runs (4th in the AL), 117 RBIs, 29 doubles, and 15 stolen bases helped him win the American League Rookie of the Year award, defeating California Angels first baseman Wally Joyner. He also finished 20th in the American League MVP ballot.
In 1987, first baseman Mark McGwire joined Canseco on the Athletics, as an everyday player. In that roster the A's also had veteran slugger Reggie Jackson, Canseco's childhood hero, playing in his last MLB season. The three sluggers combined for 95 home runs, led by McGwire’s 49 that set the rookie record. McGwire was also named the American League Rookie of the Year. Together, Canseco and McGwire formed a fearsome offensive tandem, later known as the "Bash Brothers". Canseco followed his rookie season with a similar offensive performance in 1987. He improved his batting average from .240 in 1986 to .257 in 1987, hitting 31 home runs, 113 runs batted in (6th in the AL), and 35 doubles (10th) in 691 at-bats (9th), while missing only 3 games the entire season. He was also 5th in the league in strikeouts, with 157. In the outfield, Canseco improved his performance compared to 1986. Playing left field the entire year, he was among the league leaders in this position with a .976 fielding average (3rd), 267 putouts (2nd), 12 assists (3rd), and 3 double plays (1st). He only committed 7 errors, half of what he made the previous year. He finished 23rd in the MVP ballot. Canseco combined with McGwire for a total of 80 home runs and 236 runs batted in, making the young pair (Canseco was 22 years old and McGwire 23) the most spectacular batting duo in the upcoming years, drawing comparisons to the likes of Mickey Mantle/Roger Maris, Willie Mays/Willie McCovey, and Hank Aaron/Eddie Mathews.
During the preseason of 1988, Canseco guaranteed he would hit at least 40 home runs and steal at least 40 bases in the upcoming season. The Athletics lineup featured established players with a lot of experience like former MVPs Dave Parker and Don Baylor, as well as outfielder Dave Henderson, and third baseman Carney Lansford, that complemented McGwire and Canseco in the middle of the batting order. After alternating between batting second and third in the lineup for the first 10 games of the season, he was inserted in the number 3 spot for the rest of the season. He also moved from left to right field. Canseco hit a home run on Opening Day against the Seattle Mariners and had his first stolen base of the season. During the first 40 games of the season, he hit for a .300 batting average with 10 home runs and 15 stolen bases. His first multi-home run game was on July 3 against the Toronto Blue Jays at Exhibition Stadium during a 16-inning contest in which Canseco had a 3-for-7 performance, with 3 home runs and 6 runs batted in. By the All-Star break, he had 24 home runs (1st in the American League), 22 stolen bases, and 67 RBIs (2nd in the AL). He was selected by fans to the All-Star Game as one of the starting outfielders, batting fourth in the lineup. On July 31, he had his second and last multi-home run game of the year against the Seattle Mariners, hitting 2 homers. On September 18, he hit his 40th home run of the year against the Kansas City Royals in front of the Oakland crowd. Five days later against the Milwaukee Brewers, Canseco stole 2 bases, the second one coming after his first bunt of the season, to become the first 40-40 player in Major League history. With a .393/.446/.753 slash line, 8 home runs, and 24 RBIs in 24 games for the month, he was named the American League's Player of the Month for September. A well-rounded team with lots of power, great starting and relief pitching, and a sound defense, the Oakland Athletics finished the season with a major league-best 104 wins and swept the Boston Red Sox in 4 games in the ALCS. For the series, Canseco had a .313 batting average and hit home runs in games one, two, and four, and all of them either tied the game or gave the Athletics the lead, but the ALCS MVP Award went to reliver Dennis Eckersley who had 4 saves in 4 chances. The A's met the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series, a matchup that featured the leading candidate to win the American League MVP Award facing the eventual National League Cy Young Award winner, Orel Hershiser. The Dodgers prevailed, upsetting the A's in five games. Canseco hit a grand slam in Game 1 during his first official World Series at-bat (though his second plate appearance, after he was hit by a pitch in the first inning), tying Gene Tenace for the Athletics’ franchise record of most home runs in a single postseason with 4, but it would be his only hit in the Series. He was unanimously named the American League's Most Valuable Player in 1988 (making him the seventh player in league history to win the award unanimously) with a .307 batting average, 120 runs scored (second in the league), and 347 total bases (2nd), and leading the major leagues with 76 extra-base hits, 124 RBIs, 42 home runs, a .569 slugging percentage, and a 14.5 home run per at-bat ratio. His 40 stolen bases were the fourth highest in the league. 27 of his 42 home runs of the season either tied the game or gave the Athletics the lead. He also won his first Silver Slugger Award. He was exclusively a right fielder during the year, playing in 144 games on defense, committing 7 errors in 322 chances, and had 304 putouts for a .978 fielding percentage. He was third in the league in outfielder assists with 11.