The AP is reporting that Jose Canseco is at it, again. Only this time he is point his needle at someone new – Alex Rodriguez. Canseco claims he introduced the three-time MVP to a steroids dealer.
Rodriguez told the AP, “It’s over as far as I’m concerned,” he said Wednesday after his New York Yankees lost 4-0 to the Philadelphia Phillies. “No further comment on the matter. I’m just excited to be playing baseball.”
Canseco is set to put out another book. In the book, “Vindicated: Big Names, Big Liars, and The Battle to Save Baseball,” Canseco claimed he introduced Rodriguez to a steroids dealer named “Max” after Rodriguez approached him years ago and asked where “one” might acquire steroids. Excerpts from the book (out, April 1) were posted on deadspin.com (www.deadspin.com) before being removed Wednesday.
Canseco is slated to appear on ABC’s “Nightline,” on Thursday. Canseco said he won’t produce evidence to back his claim.
“The timing’s not right,” Canseco said, according to excerpts released by ABC. “Let’s see how Alex reacts. Let’s see if they all call me a liar again. How’s that for you? Let’s see if all of a sudden they’re going to call me a liar again.”
The Yankees are treating this like a fly on the shoulder – no concern what-so-ever aside from a mild annoyance.
Yankee Manager Joe Girardi told the AP, “Alex is one of the guys who can focus on the job at hand,” he said. “I think he understands his surroundings better now. I’ve always felt that it takes players a little bit of time to figure out New York. And I found it to be a wonderful place to play. I loved it. But it takes some time. Some players it takes longer than others. But once you figure it out, it’s an awesome place to play.
“He’s always going to command a lot of attention because of the type of player he is,” Girardi added. “And everything he does is going to be under a microscope. Is that fair? I don’t know if it’s fair, but it’s reality.”
According to a report by The Record of Bergen County, N.J., Yankees senior vice president Hank Steinbrenner defended Rodriguez.
“Consider the source, that’s number one,” Steinbrenner told the paper, referring to Canseco. “He wouldn’t have been able to hit the ball out of the infield without steroids.”
Steinbrenner was quoted as saying by the newspaper’s Web site, “There are certain naturals. There are guys who can just do it, and Alex is one of those guys.”
(Editors Note: There will most likely be a reaction to this story up soon, posted by either Casey Grogan or Nick Lilja. another look at this issue can be found here . Fans can feel free to comment below.)
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