Jose Canseco could hit a baseball — and he knew it.
Drafted in the 15th round of the 1982 MLB Draft by the Oakland Athletics, the Cuban slugger was a September call-up in 1985 and won AL Rookie of the Year in 1986.
Ahead of the 1988 season, Canseco predicted that he would pull off an unprecedented 40 homers and 40 steals — he kept his word to found the 40-40 club.
“Hell, If I’d known 40–40 was going to be a big deal, I’d have done it every year,” Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle later joked.
A World Series triumph with the iconic Athletics team of 1989 earned him a ring and he won a second with the New York Yankees 11 years later.
By the time he retired in 2001, ‘Parkway Joe’ was a six-time All-Star, MVP, four-time Silver Slugger winner, and twice led the MLB in home runs.
Canseco had also pocketed $55million in career earnings.
Four years after retiring, he wrote a book called ‘Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant ‘Roids, Smash Hits & How Baseball Got Big‘, where he made controversial claims about steroid use in baseball.
It led to him being ostracized from MLB circles and he later described himself as a modern-day Frankenstein.
“People are afraid to deal with me,” he told ESPN. “I’ve been trying to get into the entertainment industry, acting industry. Maybe some martial arts roles. Producers didn’t want to touch me.
“When I wrote the book they categorized me as a snitch right away. So in other industries I cannot be touched.
“It has been horrible for me. I can’t have any relations in Major League Baseball.”
By 2018, Canseco was in bad shape financially and had just $20 to his name despite his 17-year baseball career.
“Well, people don’t know this but after that time I had a really bad time. Had twenty dollars in my pocket and lived in a garage for about six months,” he told VladTV.
“I went through a really hard time when I wrote the book, Juiced. I made millions, invested that money in a property, and lost that.
“But after that, there was a period of time when no one would talk to me at all. No one dealt with me, no one hired me. And financially I was strapped.”
It sounds impossible to burn through so much cash but Canseco revealed that it’s easier than you think.
“I think the amount we come up with is about $55 million. I can tell you exactly every red cent went to,” he added.
“It’s funny, you got to start with taxes, right away 40 percent. You got to start with divorces that are $7 million.
“Bad investments, family, friends, it can go really quickly.”
Canseco’s influencer daughter Josie has revealed that she was forced to keep up a pretence of living a lavish lifestyle to protect her dad.
“I love my dad and am proud of where I come from,” the model told the New York Post in 2018.
“Growing up, there was a lot of pressure to meet certain expectations and appear as though we had money. It was like living in a facade.
“I didn’t want people to know about the struggles, like the bankruptcy or when he was arrested, because those were things out of my control.”
In January, the US Sun revealed that Canseco was selling prized possessions, including a unique 40-40 club poker table and a custom Triumph motorcycle.
His latest venture is the PX 40/40 — an arm brace designed to help players with their batting.
‘The Chemist’ describes his invention as the ‘future of power hitting’ and vows that it will ‘bring back the longball.’
For better or worse, Canseco has made a huge impact on the sport of baseball. Perhaps he’s just getting started.
