Hey Cansecoites,

Jose is officially a member of the Anaheim Angels. They offered him a
minor league contract (which I suspect is just technical for meaning they
aren't guaranteeing him a place on the roster until he proves himself
during spring training) for the league minimum $200,000. It's full of
incentives (based mostly on plate appearances) that could boost it to over
$5 million.

I think Jose is going to fit in nicely in Anaheim. He should be the every
day DH and will be surrounded by good hitters, including ex-teammate Mo
Vaughn. He says he's lost 20 pounds of muscle (this is a good thing), so
hopefully he'll report to Spring Training 100%. I think Jose needs another
couple of healthy years to earn his way into the Hall of Fame. Hopefully
Anaheim is the place he can finally regain his early 1999 form. I know he can.

-Mark

==========
From the Orange County Register:
Angels looking at Canseco
January 15, 2001
By CHERYL ROSENBERG

The Angels might finally have an answer to their daily question of who is
going to be their designated hitter.

They are close to a deal with free-agent slugger Jose Canseco, who received
a $500,000 buyout from the New York Yankees this winter.

``We've had talks, and they've been favorable, but I can't comment on the
immediacy of any signing,'' Angels Vice President of Communications Tim
Mead said.

Canseco, when healthy, would add to the Angels already powerful lineup. He
has missed time for injuries in each of the past six seasons, including
back surgery in 1999.

He was out from May 25-July 17 of last season with a strained heel, missing
46 games with the Devil Rays.

The Yankees claimed him off waivers from the Devil Rays last August. He
played five games in the outfield, his first appearances in the field since
July 1999.

Canseco batted .252 with 15 homers and 49 RBI in 98 games between the two
teams. The Yankees declined his $4 million option after the season.

The Angels were third in the AL with 236 homers last season. Scott Spiezio,
who played the most games for them at DH, hit just six of them in 50 games
while batting .224.

Canseco, 36, is 23rd on the all-time home run list with 446. The former
Bash Brother would join former Red Sox teammate Mo Vaughn, who hit 36
homers last season; Troy Glaus (47), Garret Anderson (35), Tim Salmon (34)
and Darin Erstad (25) in the Angels lineup.

Canseco was the 1988 AL MVP and is a lifetime .266 hitter with 1,358 RBI.
He started his major league career in '85 with the A's. He also played for
Texas, Boston and Toronto.

==========
From CNN/SI:
Have bat, will travel
Report: Canseco, Angels close on agreement
January 15, 2001

NEW YORK (AP) -- Jose Canseco, cut loose by the New York Yankees after the
World Series, is close to reaching an agreement with the DH-hungry Anaheim
Angels, The Associated Press has learned.

A productive power hitter when he plays regularly, Canseco is expected to
sign a free-agent deal with Anaheim early this week, a source familiar with
the negotiations said Sunday night on the condition of anonymity.

Canseco, 36, is 23rd on baseball's career home run list with 446. Injury
prone in the past, he split last season with Tampa Bay and the Yankees,
hitting .252 with 15 home runs and 49 RBIs in 98 games.

The champion Yankees declined a $4 million option on him in November,
instead paying a $500,000 buyout.

The Angels ranked third in the AL with 236 home runs, yet their
power-packed lineup was minus a steady designated hitter. Scott Spiezio was
Anaheim's most frequent DH and batted only .224 with six homers in 50 games
in that role.

Canseco would join a lineup that includes AL homer leader Troy Glaus (47),
Mo Vaughn (36), Garret Anderson (35), Tim Salmon (34) and Darin Erstad (25).

Vaughn and Canseco got along well during their two years as teammates in
Boston.

Canseco was on the disabled list from May 25-July 17 because of a strained
left heel and missed 46 games for the Devil Rays.

He has been sidelined by injuries in each of the last six years, with back
problems slowing him in four seasons.

The Yankees claimed Canseco on waivers Aug. 7 to block him from going to
another contender. Manager Joe Torre was caught off-guard by the acquisition.

"I'm stunned," Torre said at the time. "I don't get surprised too often,
but I was surprised."

Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who had always liked Canseco, backed the
move.

"I want to make it clear that I support the decision of (general manager)
Brian Cashman 100 percent and I am surprised that anyone would be surprised
by his aggressiveness," Steinbrenner said.

Canseco made 31 starts for the Yankees in the regular season. He played
five games in the outfield, his first appearances in the field since July 1999.

Canseco made only one postseason appearance, striking out as a pinch hitter
in the World Series.

The 1988 AL MVP is a lifetime .266 hitter with 1,358 RBIs in a major league
career that started in 1985 with Oakland. He later played for Texas, Boston
and Toronto.

==========
From the Orange County Register:
Canseco, Angels are 'very close'
January 16, 2001
By CHERYL ROSENBERG

The Angels need a designated hitter, and Jose Canseco expects to take that
job by the end of the week.

"Worst-case scenario, by Friday," Canseco said Monday from Miami. "It could
be today. I know it's very close. Their outfield's set. My primary goal is
to DH every day."

Canseco, a free agent who played most of last season for the Tampa Bay
Devil Rays until being claimed off waivers by the New York Yankees on Aug.
7, would return to a West Coast team for the first time since he left the
Oakland A's for the Texas Rangers in 1992.

The Yankees bought out Canseco's contract for $500,000 instead of
exercising a $4 million option.

The 36-year-old has worked hard getting into shape. He's been hindered by
back problems the past four seasons, and missed two months last season with
a strained heel.

Canseco said he's lost over 20 pounds of muscle with a new training
regimen, which doesn't include lifting heavy weights.

"It was too much muscle for one body," Canseco said. "I tried to score from
second base and tore a hamstring and a quad. My main concern is to stay
healthy. I'm definitely leaner and faster."

Canseco, 23rd on the all-time home run list with 446, hopes to bring some
veteran leadership to the team. He knows about the Angels' powerful lineup
and figures he'll fit right in.

"But the name of the game is pitching," Canseco said.

That's something Canseco can't help with. He pitched an inning for the
Rangers against the Boston Red Sox on May 29, 1993 and tore a ligament in
his right elbow. He was out for the rest of the year.

==========
From the AP:
Angels' Next Designated Hitter: Jose Canseco
By Chris Foster
1/16/2001

ANAHEIM, Calif. The Anaheim Angels are expected to announce the signing of
Jose Canseco to an incentive-laden one-year contract Tuesday, a baseball
source said.

Canseco will receive the major league minimum $200,000 with incentives that
could take him over $5 million, according to the source.

Canseco played in 98 games with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and New York
Yankees last season, but the Yankees gave Canseco a $500,000 buyout rather
than pick up his $4 million option for next season.

Signing the 36-year-old Canseco is a low-risk move by the Angels, who were
in dire need of a designated hitter. Scott Spiezio was the Angels most
frequently used DH last season but hit only .224 with six home runs in 50
games.

The Angels have been burned in the past by aging sluggers, having signed
Eddie Murray in 1997 and Cecil Fielder in 1998. But Canseco comes with has
high-end potential with minimum financial risk.

He missed two months last season because of a heel injury and has also been
bothered by back problems in recent seasons. As a result, Canseco hit .252
with 15 home runs and drove in 49 runs in 98 games with the Devil Rays and
Yankees last season. Still, he did finish third in the American League with
46 home runs and had 107 runs batted in 151 games with Toronto in 1998, the
only time since 1991 he has played a full season.

Canseco joins a lineup already loaded with power hitters. The Angels were
third in the league with 236 home runs. Troy Glaus led the league with 47,
Mo Vaughn had 36, Garret Anderson 35 and Tim Salmon 34. Darin Erstad had 25
home runs.

By adding Canseco to that already potent lineup, the Angels might be
banking that run-production can offset a group of starting pitchers made up
of young arms and questionable arms. Pat Rapp and Ismael Valdes were the
only veteran pitchers the Angels signed during the off-season.

Canseco ranks 23rd on the all-time list with 446 home runs. He was named
the league's rookie of the year in 1986 and most valuable player in 1988
while with Oakland, where he teamed with Mark McGwire to form the Bash
Brothers.

==========
From the LA Times:
Angels and Canseco Have Reached Deal
Baseball: Incentive-laden, one-year contract could pay slugger more than $5
million to become team's designated hitter.
By CHRIS FOSTER

The Angels are expected to announce the signing of Jose Canseco to an
incentive-laden one-year contract today, a baseball source said.

Canseco will receive the major league minimum $200,000 with incentives that
could take him over $5 million, according to the source.

==========
From Reuters:
Angels, Canseco Agree to Minor-League Contract

ANAHEIM, Calif. (Reuters) - The Anaheim Angels added another powerful bat
to their lineup on Tuesday, agreeing to a minor-league contract with
well-traveled designated hitter Jose Canseco.

Financial terms of the deal, which include an invitation to spring
training, were not disclosed.

The 36-year-old Canseco became a free agent when the New York Yankees
declined to exercise a $4 million option for next season. He hit .243 with
six homers and 19 RBI in 37 games for the Yankees after being claimed off
waivers from the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Canseco is a six-time All-Star who was named American League Most Valuable
Player in 1988 for the Oakland Athletics. But he has been plagued by
injuries and is joining his sixth team in as many years. He missed close to
two months with a strained right heel and has been on the DL 12 times in
his career.

The Angels finished third in the AL with 236 homers last season, including
a league-best 47 by Troy Glaus. Four players -- Glaus, Mo Vaughn, Garret
Anderson and Tim Salmon -- hit at least 30.

But Anaheim was still search for a designated hitter after using a variety
of players in the role last season.

In 1999, Canseco was the first Devil Ray elected to the All-Star Game,
although he was forced to sit out the contest for the third time in his
career.

Canseco came up through the Athletics' organization and was AL Rookie of
the Year in 1986, when he hit 33 homers and drove in 117 runs. He was
baseball's first ``40-40'' player in 1988, hitting 42 homers and stealing
40 bases as he led Oakland to the pennant.

Canseco signed with the Devil Rays after a resurgent year in Toronto in
1998, when he hit 46 homers and drove in 107 runs in 151 games. He was
traded from Oakland to Texas in 1992 and played for Boston in 1995 and
1996. Canseco returned to Oakland for the 1997 season.

The native of Cuba is a career .266 hitter with 1,358 RBI.