No Way Jose!

Jose Canseco, his baseball skills made men envious and his rugged good looks made women swoon. How did this star athlete go from the top of his game to possibly being black balled?

Jose Canseco Capas Jr. was born on July 2, 1964 in Havana, Cuba. His family left Havana and settled in Miami, Florida in 1965. He played baseball at Miami Coral Park High School until he graduated in 1982. That same year Canseco was drafted in the 15th round by the Oakland Athletics. During this time he played for their minor league farm team. On September 2, 1985 Canseco made his major league appearance against the Baltimore Orioles. (he struck out at bat, not a good look Jose)

In 1986 he established his star status by being named American League’s “Rookie of the Year”. In 1987 he joined forces with Mark McGwire to form “The Bash Brothers” The name stemming from each players talent to hit home runs. In 1988 Canseco became the first player in MLB history to hit 40 homes and steal 40 bases in one season. After that stellar season he would bounce around to different teams playing for: The Texas Rangers (1992), Boston Red Sox (1995), and Toronto Blue Jays (1998). He did return to the Oakland A’s for a quick stint in 1997. He retired from the MLB in May 2002 and had a failed comeback attempt in 2004.

I know, I know you have been patiently waiting to get to the good stuff. Where exactly did Canseco go wrong during and after his career? He was a looker but he might not have been the brightest crayon in the box.

On February 10, 1989 (literally the day I was born…go figure) Canseco was arrested and charged with reckless driving after taking a police officer on a 15 mile car cash. He was ordered to pay a $500 fine and went on his merry way. In April of that same year Canseco was arrested a second time for carrying a loaded pistol in his car. He pleaded no contest and was released on $2,500 bail. OK, he was arrested twice so he for sure learned his lesson, right? On February 13, 1992 he was charged with aggravated battery when he rammed his than wife’s (Esther) car with his own. Come on Jose, a day before Valentine’s, that’s some gift. On March 13th he plead not guilty and was sentenced to take a anger management course and community service.

Like I said he looked good he just didn’t use his brain. He was arrested on domestic violence charges in November 1997 for hitting his second wife, Jessica. In January 1998 he once again plead no contest and received a year of probation. Canseco also had to return to anger management classes which clearly did not help the first time around. To his credit he did manage to lay low for a few years but in 2001 Jose and his twin brother Ozzie got into a fist fight while at a club in Miami Beach. The brothers were charged with two counts of aggravated battery each. They received probation and both had to join a community service program as well. Can I just say that if this was an average Joe Blow their ass would have been in jail by now? Oh well, I guess money really does talk.

After his retirement in 2002 Canseco went on to write a book highlighting his career and the ongoing use of steroids in the MLB, (throwing quite a few players under the bus…actually he ran them over and backed that bitch up again.) this is what lead Canseco to believe that he had been blackballed from the professional sport. I mean, you were already retired….nobody was going to pick up your crusty ass anyway.

In March 2003 he was arrested in his home for breaking probation after he tested positive for ‘roids (He finally went to jail…….for a month). Canseco managed to stay out of trouble for 5 years before being detained by immigration officials in October of 2008 for allegedly trying to smuggle a fertility drug from Mexico into the USA.

But wait….there’s more! On May 22, 2013 Canseco was named as a person of interest regarding an ongoing rape case in Las Vegas, Nevada.

However, in June of that year he was cleared of any wrongdoing. Now, did he pay his way out of the charges? Who the hell knows!?

Surely after all he has been through Jose must have sewn his wild oats, right? WRONG!

Jose Conseco wanted to go out with a bang (literally). On October 28, 2014 he surprisingly was not arrested or charged with anything! Instead he accidentally shot his left hand while cleaning a gun in his Las Vegas home. Remember kids, guns are no fun! Especially if you shoot yourself in the hand.

Mr. Conseco has kept a rather low profile since the 2014 gun incident. Something tells me we will hear another story about this Bash Bro’s crazy antics by 2024.

Fun Facts:

In October 2019 Canseco opened his own car wash in Las vegas, Nevada

His twin brother Ozzie had a brief stint in the MLB between 1991 and 1993

His second wife Jessica has been accused of having an affair with baseball superstar Alex Rodriguez

Sources:

Jose Canseco was a Yankee – Jomboy Media

Fast Facts – CNN

Jose Canseco – Society for American Baseball Research