Hey everyone,

Another baseball season has come to an end. Unfortunately for Jose, his
ended with a long cold streak. His final numbers:
76 games, 256 ABs, .258 average, 16 homers, 49 RBIs and a .477 slugging
percentage.

Where will Jose be playing next year? No one knows yet. The only thing
that is definite, according to Jose, is that he will not be retiring. He
said he'll play in Japan or an independent league again if he has to. He'd
like to play the outfield again and is planning on playing winter ball in
Puerto Rico to prove he can. All the news from the past few weeks is below.

Enjoy the offseason...
Mark

==========
From the Daily Southtown:
Playing with pain
Canseco: 'We're just an escape'
Tuesday, September 18, 2001
By Joe Cowley

There have been no promises or guarantees made about business as usual.
Baseball is in no position to do that.

"We're just an escape for a few hours - that's it," White Sox designated
hitter Jose Canseco said Monday. "When the game is over, the memories will
still be there. We can't change that."

The White Sox will take the field tonight at Comiskey Park for the first
time since last Tuesday's terrorist attacks in New York and Washington
prompted baseball to shut down for a week....

==========
From the Chicago Tribune:

DH 2002: Manuel said that selecting the team's designated hitter for 2002
will be one of the high priority missions in spring training.

"We have a lot of candidates and that's the problem, trying to find those
guys positions," Manuel said. "But we do feel in the American League, if
you have pitching and hitting, you can be competitive. We have no problem
with being last on defense."

The long list of potential DHs includes first basemen Frank Thomas, Paul
Konerko and Jeff Liefer, third baseman Herbert Perry and outfielders Carlos
Lee and Jose Canseco.

"We have to find out first if Frank will be able to play first base,"
Manuel said. "First base is basically Konerko's only position. Liefer is
really a first baseman. Then there is Herbert and maybe even Carlos Lee. As
for Canseco, we'll bring in Jose in the spring and find out if he can play
an outfield position.

"It's going to be interesting when we get all those people together and
decide what's the best fit for the team. No doubt that will be a major
project for spring training."

Big chance: Manuel said he wants to see more of Liefer, pitcher Josh Fogg
and third baseman Joe Crede in the final days of this season. Liefer played
third base Friday night and hit his 18th home run in 78 games.

"Liefer could be the left-handed bat we've looked for," Manuel said. "He
did a decent job at third base until he kind of flinched in Boston. Fogg
has shown a good curveball and put himself into the mix. And, of course, we
want to see more of Crede."

==========
From the Chicago Sun Times:
Next year is here for Sox
September 21, 2001
BY TONI GINNETTI

Auditions are on for the 2002 White Sox season, and there is no shortage of
hopefuls for the spring casting call.

Among the roles available is designated hitter, a position that won't
necessarily go to Frank Thomas when he returns next season after missing
2001 with a torn right triceps.

The Sox will see if Thomas can play first base. And possibly if Jose
Canseco can play a position, too.

''We have a lot of candidates for designated hitter, and that's the
problem,'' manager Jerry Manuel said Friday. ''We don't really have a
problem as much as a logjam.''

That logjam--minus veteran Harold Baines--includes Thomas, Canseco (should
the Sox retain the free agent), perhaps Herbert Perry ''and even Carlos
Lee,'' Manuel said.

But the candidate he's most interested in is Jeff Liefer, whose left-handed
bat Manuel covets.

''We've been looking for a left-handed hitter for a long time and we're
testing to see if he can be consistent,'' he said. ''I think he'll be going
to winter ball in Puerto Rico to play third. I'd like to see if he can
handle it. I know we have Joe Crede, but we need a left-handed bat.''...

...Manuel said the Sox have had discussions with Canseco about returning to
the team and playing in the field, but like so much of next season's team,
the options aren't all clear.

''When we sit down, they'll be some tough decisions to make. I don't know
if we can continue to have the mix we have now.''

==========
From the Daily Southtown:
Highly charged
Canseco promising bigger numbers in 2002 if given the opportunity
Tuesday, September 25, 2001
By Paul Ladewski

From his bulging biceps to his towering home runs to his date with
Madonna, everything about Jose Canseco has been monstrous in his career. At
37, his legend continues to grow.

Just listen to what Canseco has in store for next season.

"If I get 600 at-bats and don't get 40 home runs and 100 RBI, then I'll
retire," he said flatly.

On the record?

"You can quote me on that."

Sort of like a career-back guarantee?

"If I get 600 at-bats and don't hit 40 home runs or more and get 100 RBI or
more, then I'll retire," he says one more time.

Retire?

"Retire."

At this point, retirement is the last thing on his mind. Since his arrival
from an independent minor league team in Newark, N.J., Canseco has produced
15 home runs and 45 RBI in a span of three months.

Canseco is convinced he can maintain a similar pace for two or three more
seasons, but here is the fine print: He is adamant about a return to the
outfield, a position he hasn't played regularly in nine years.

"Hopefully, next year some team will see me as any everyday (position)
player, because I want to play the outfield again," said Canseco, who could
be playing in his last home series in a Sox uniform starting today.

While Canseco downplayed the significance of it, the 2002 season could
determine whether Cooperstown, N.Y., is in his near future.

"The chance to hit 500 home runs isn't what's most important to me," he
insisted. "What motivates me is that I have a lot of productive years left
to play."

If Canseco makes good on his promise of 40 home runs next season, he'll be
just the 17th player with as many as 500 in his career. Of the 14 players
in the group who have been eligible for the Hall of Fame, all have gained
admittance.

Not only would 500 home runs put Canseco in select company, but a return to
the outfield would reaffirm the notion that he was something more than a
power hitter.

In 1988, Canseco became the first member of the 40-40 Club - 40 or more
home runs, 40 or more stolen bases - en route to the only Most Valuable
Player award of his career.

"I truly feel that, if I play the outfield, I can do 30-30 again," he said.
"It's just that I have to be given the opportunity to do it."

Sox manager Jerry Manuel and the front office have discussed a plan in
which Canseco and prized prospect Joe Borchard would split time in left
field next season. The alignment would leave incumbent Carlos Lee available
in a trade, perhaps for an established pitcher.

While Canseco may never live down the fly ball that struck him on the head
and went for a homer years ago, he may not be that much more of a liability
than Lee, who has been a disappointment in the field this season. And
Manuel considers defense to be less of a priority in the American League
anyway.

What's more, in the absence of Frank Thomas, Canseco has emerged as perhaps
the biggest fan attraction at Comiskey Park this season. And his pursuit of
500 home runs could reap dividends at the box office as well.

While Manuel conceded that Canseco could be invited to spring training for
an outfield tryout, Canseco was somewhat perplexed that such a tryout
didn't take place after the team was out of contention this month.

Asked whether it would take something more concrete for him to sign what
could be his final major league contract, Canseco said, "Yeah, definitely.
I want to be an everyday player.

"It's out of my control really," he went on to say. "It's up to (the front
office). All I can do is help the team when I play. I try to help the
younger players and show some type of leadership and, hopefully, bring a
bat to the lineup that can help them also."

Regardless of where Canseco heads after this season, he calls the past
three months a "very positive" experience.

"I have a lot of friends here on the team as well as throughout the
organization," he said. "I'm grateful to the organization because they gave
me at-bats."

Manuel admits he was one of those who opposed the move at the time, partly
because he wasn't sure Canseco would fit in with so many young players in
the locker room.

Since then, Canseco has made a believer out of him, too.

"Jose has been a pleasant surprise for us," Manuel said. "He has done
everything that has been asked of him."

==========
From the Chicago Sun Times:

The failure of the Wells gamble didn't stop Williams from taking another
chance, this one with Jose Canseco. It turned out better than anyone could
have expected. Yet that move, too, has been criticized. With the team going
nowhere, why take away at-bats from a young player?

''Jose not only helped us on the field but in the clubhouse as well,''
Williams said. ''He's a pro.''

I wouldn't want to be Williams this offseason, preparing for next year. He
has too many decisions awaiting him. Too many players whose best position
is designated hitter, too many rehabbing pitchers, too many unreliable
young pitching arms.

==========
From the AP:
Canseco's struggles

With an 0-for-4 in Friday's loss to the Royals, Jose Canseco was 0-for-21
in the seven games prior to Saturday. He was not in the starting lineup
Saturday night, as Manuel opted for Jeff Liefer as his designated hitter.

"I just (stink) right now," Canseco said. "Plain and simple."

==========
From the Chicago Tribune:
Was this Canseco's last clout?
After 462 HRs, slugger may need new home in '02
By Paul Sullivan
October 3, 2001

NEW YORK - Jose Canseco put his head down and circled the bases after
hitting his 462nd home run in Wednesday night's 2-1 loss to New York at
Yankee Stadium.

He didn't bother looking at what could be the final home run of his career.
The return of Frank Thomas makes Canseco expendable, so he'll enter the
final series of the season in Minnesota not knowing whether it's also the
end of his career.

"This game has taught me a lot of things and one of them is not to take
anything for granted," Canseco said. "Today could be my last at-bat
forever. It's a shocking experience no doubt."

...Canseco broke an 0-for-31 skid in the second inning, belting his 16th
home run since joining the team June 21, leaving him 38 shy of the 500
plateau that he may need to seal a spot in the Hall of Fame.

White Sox DHs this season have combined to hit only .243 with 25 home runs
and 87 RBIs. With Thomas as the primary player in the DH slot last year,
Sox DH's combined to hit .296 with 32 home runs and 117 RBIs.

Where Canseco will wind up next year is still up in the air and his
end-of-the-season slump probably hasn't helped matters.

"I won't retire," Canseco said. "One thing is I'm not a quitter. I never
have been and never will be. It's going to take a lot more than that to get
me out of the game."

==========
From the Chicago Tribune:
Canseco gamble ends with mixed results
Sox get production but no opportunity to evaluate Liefer
By Paul Sullivan
October 4, 2001

On the day the White Sox signed Jose Canseco last June, manager Jerry
Manuel revealed his game plan for the rest of the season.

"I'm going to try to grow my hair as long as I can," Manuel said, "so it
won't all fall out at one time."

This weekend's season-ending series at Minnesota figures to be the end of
Canseco's days with the Sox, but Manuel's hair remains, albeit a little
grayer around the edges.

Canseco did not lead the Sox to a playoff spot-the actual game plan-but he
gave them a credible threat in the middle of the lineup for the
bargain-basement price of $135,000. Saying he could practically "smell the
wild card," general manager Ken Williams signed Canseco from the
independent Newark Bears on June 20, conceding it was a gamble.

Since no other major-league team had given Canseco the time of day after
his release by Anaheim in March, the risk for embarrassment seemed high. At
the time, Williams already had gone through a few months of "Shouldergate,"
the almost instantaneous injury to Antonio Osuna after the Sox gave him a
three-year contract extension and Royce Clayton's subterranean start.

Canseco's presence helped the Sox rebound in the second half, and it helped
him show he can stay off the disabled list and hit home runs.

"He's remained healthy and had a chance to get some at-bats consistently
here," Manuel said. "He's produced. He's struggled lately, but for the most
part he's contributed."...

==========
From the AP:

CANSECO CONTINUES: White Sox DH Jose Canseco will play baseball next year,
even if it means another trip to an independent league to start the season.
With Frank Thomas scheduled to return, they won't need the Bash Brother to
DH. "The No. 1 thing," he told the Chicago Sun-Times, "is I'm not a
quitter." Surely someone will take a chance on him as a regular DH for 2002
-- Baltimore and Minnesota are possibilities, as long as he doesn't demand
a huge salary. Besides, if you stretch his 2001 stats over a 500-at-bat
season, he'd have 32 homers and about 100 RBIs. However, it might take more
than one season for the 37-year-old to hit the 38 homers he needs for 500.

==========
From the Chicago Tribune:
Wrong ingredients spoil 2 seasons
Manuel tees off on players who make excuses

MINNEAPOLIS - The White Sox's season really began in mid-February in
Tucson, Ariz., when Frank Thomas complained about his contract and walked
out of camp in protest.

The season hit a low point in late May in Oakland when hitting coach Von
Joshua criticized the players for watching "Meet the Parents" before a game
instead of tapes of themselves hitting and claimed the "lure of big money"
was the root cause of an underachieving offense.

And it all ended Sunday in the Metrodome with an 8-5 loss to Minnesota and
an unexpected diatribe by manager Jerry Manuel, who blasted unnamed players
for putting the pursuit of the big payday before the pursuit of team goals.

"Everything is based on money," Manuel said. "A guy has got his money and
he says, `OK, now I'm satisfied, [even] if you tell me my role is limited.'
Now he gets to that role and it's like, `No, I'm not [satisfied.]' But
that's baseball."...

...Jose Canseco won't be back. He said he'll play winter ball in Puerto
Rico to prove to National League teams he can play outfield. Canseco is
interested in the Cubs.

"I'd love to bat in front of Sammy [Sosa]," he said.