Say this about Jose Canseco: He radiates believability when it comes to being the poster boy for steroids. An Action Hero torso and 600-foot home runs will do that. However, his inject-and-tell book, “Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant ‘Roids, Smash Hits and How Baseball Got Big,” is a he-said, they-said mixed bag. Que sera, syringe.
Where Canseco’s credibility atrophies is when – in the process of naming names of steroid users – he drops a dime on Wilson “Another Taco, Please” Alvarez. That’s the portly pitcher who misspent five seasons with the Devil Rays frustrating everybody but American League hitters.
Wilson Alvarez? Imagine if the Krispy Kreme poster lad hadn’t been doing steroids? Better yet, don’t.
But maybe in some perverse way this is what the steroids scandal has needed. To wit: Too many young athletes, regrettably, will continue to look at Canseco, or Jason Giambi, Mark McGwire, Ivan Rodriguez, Sammy Sosa, Juan Gonzalez, Barry Bonds or Bret Boone and think a growth-hormone deal with the devil may still be worth it.
But Wilson “Abs From Hell” Alvarez? Now there’s a real deterrent.
If it’s true, take one for the team, Wilson, and belly up to the bar of veracity. Your legacy will include something other than being the overpaid, underperforming Tropicana Dough Boy.