Jose Canseco is well past the "naming names" stage of his steroid accusations. However, as ridiculous and irresponsible as Canseco seems with his chatter about this player and that player, he has, for the most part, been correct. And the latest player that's the target of Canseco's pseudo-slanderous steroid chatter is Manny Ramirez, which is a most shocking revelation (although no more shocking than when Canseco accused Alex Rodriguez).
Canseco spoke to at the Brovard Auditorium on the USC campus recently and the Los Angeles Times' Kurt Streeter caught up with him afterwards, specifically interested about why Canseco stated that Ramirez's "name is most likely, 90 percent" on the list of players who used steroids.
Canseco asked questions as to the status of Ramirez receiving a long-term contract and why owners were so hesitant to sign him as "evidence" as to why Ramirez used steroids, but admitted he had "no way of knowing" whether Ramirez was guilty of using PEDs.
And that, in my mind, makes this allegation seem pretty silly: Ramirez didn't get a long-term deal because there was no chance of receiving the money he wanted over the course of a long-term contract. Additionally, he's 36, so it's not like every team out there should have been scrambling to lock him up in a 12-year uber-deal anyway. Oh, and perhaps Canseco missed it, but the economy collapsed while Ramirez was trying to get paid.
Manny, by the way, laughed off Canseco's allegations when Streeter followed up on the discussion, stating that, ""I got no comment, nothing to say about that. What can I say? I don't even know the guy."
In other words: Yes, Canseco has been right before, and plenty of times. Yes, he broke open the steroid scandal. But in this case, it just seems like he's in the same desperate corner of his, swinging wildly with names in the hopes that another name in a sea full of guilty players manages to stick on the wall and he can score a tiny extension on his 15 minutes in the spotlight.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-06-2009 @ 8:19PM
richschknr said...
Why does the writer say this is "shocking"? Is it because he isn't a Yankee so he feels that this player couldn't possibly be guilty?
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4-07-2009 @ 12:31AM
wdfisher57 said...
I'd say that after all has been said and done concerning Canseco and his fervently dismissed accusations about steroid use aqnd abuse by most of the cream of the crop in big league baseball, he is actually due a huge apology by all the memebers of the press who sought to discredit him and with all the many articles and columns written since he made his first claims. I cannot think of any players he has been wrong about, but I doubt if the writers in this sport have the guts to do the right thing and apologise to him publically anyway. He has sure opened the eyes of the paying public and now the rose is off the bloom, as it ought to be. Kudos Mr. Canseco.
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4-07-2009 @ 1:41AM
claytor said...
The guy is an other worldly jackass yes, but he has yet to be proven wrong.
That my friend, is scary as hell.
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4-07-2009 @ 1:58AM
ButtHead said...
Manny on Roids. Make me laugh Jose. You wouldn't be able to tell if you look at his pictures through the years. He looks kind of skinny with the Indians, chubby with the Red Sox and pleasingly plump with the Dodgers. In no way does he have the muscle defintion. He may have hemroids because he hates to sit the bench, but not steroids. Besides, his head only got bigger from the dred locks. I realize jose has been right alot with his implications, but not Manny.
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5-16-2009 @ 2:39AM
chaney4591 said...
Well well well, it looks like Canseco was right. The reason it's hard to tell if he's gotten any bigger is probably because he wears such a baggy uniform. His pants look like they were used on the M.C. Hammer Tour. I'm sure just about every active player has taken something to "enhance" their ability. Just as the testing for steroids will become more and more advanced, so will the techniques to hide its use. It will never stop.
4-07-2009 @ 5:45AM
Jim said...
How come Jim Thome has stayed clear in all this?? He went from a skinny third baseman as a rookie to double that size in his third year in the bigs. Check the pictures. Pictures don't lie. Could it be because he is such a great guy, the anti Manny if you will, that he gets a free pass??
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4-07-2009 @ 8:47AM
Adam said...
Jose hasn't been wrong yet... but this 90% crap doesn't fly - that means he doesn't know and he's giving himself a 10% out if he is wrong - and if you don't know you shouldn't open your mouth. He hasn't given us a 90% ever before - he's only said "He did it" - and been right. This is how rumors get started...
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4-07-2009 @ 12:58PM
dralfredotaule said...
IT WOULD BE FAIR TO OUT THE OTHER 103 PLAYERS WHO TESTED POSITIVE WITH AROD.
I HEARD WE WILL BE SHOCKED. THERE ARE MANY LITTLE WHITE PLAYERS WHO ARE ON THE LIST.
THE LIST WAS TO BE CONFIDENTIAL SO WHY DID WE ONLY REPORT ONE PLAYER?
THAT IS BULL. ONE OR ALL OR NONE!
MANNY, YOU KNOW YOU ARE ON THE LIST WITH SOME CLEAN CUT GUYS!
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4-08-2009 @ 2:13PM
Pat Kellaher said...
There's a 100 percent chance that Jose Canseco is an asshole
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4-10-2009 @ 11:21AM
Crash173 said...
Manny is a moron, he wouldn't know a steroid if it bit him in his corn row
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5-07-2009 @ 12:18PM
MrGregB123 said...
I guess Canseco isn't blowing smoke after all now, is he?
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5-07-2009 @ 9:19PM
Brian said...
"...it just seems like he's in the same desperate corner of his, swinging wildly with names in the hopes that another name in a sea full of guilty players manages to stick on the wall"
Hmmm seems like he was right and you were wrong.
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