Sep 9, 2026 · 1h 21m
Canseco revisits baseball’s steroid-era double standard
Jose Canseco: Madonna's Obsession, McGwire Relationship, Truth About Bonds, Beating Rickey in a Race
José Canseco’s account connects baseball’s PED controversy to Hall of Fame rules, player health, media pressure, and the sport’s selective memory.
- 1Canseco argues baseball cannot fairly exclude some PED-associated players while recognizing others from earlier eras.
- 2He credits Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa with helping revive baseball while describing the personal cost of steroid-era fame.
- 3Looking back, Canseco regrets PED use and writing Juiced, even as he defends the story it forced baseball to confront.
Don't miss
Canseco recounts how a fly ball bounced off his head and over the fence for a home run, turning an injury into baseball folklore.
The brief
José Canseco opens with baseball’s central steroid-era contradiction: if Major League Baseball admitted some users, he argues, it cannot selectively deny others Hall of Fame recognition.
His story runs from a Cuban-American upbringing and a promise to his mother to Oakland stardom, a 40-40 season, intense training, and the celebrity pressure that followed.
Canseco describes Mark McGwire as both teammate and partner in baseball’s revival, while arguing that PEDs could aid recovery but could not manufacture hand-eye coordination or baseball skill.
The conversation widens to umpiring, gambling allegations, changing rules, and baseball’s treatment of greenies, cocaine, alcohol, and performance-enhancing drugs as shifting standards.
The standout story is a home run that bounced off Canseco’s head and over the fence, a comic accident that captures the strange mythology surrounding his career.
By the end, Canseco says he would avoid PEDs and reconsider Juiced, while still believing Major League Baseball punished him for exposing the steroid era.
Books & mentions
Some links are affiliate links — PodLume may earn a commission if you buy.
