To be an Athletics fan, one has to understand why Billy Beane makes the decisions that he does, that until Cisco Field in Fremont is built, the Elephants will be a small market, low revenue team that is constantly in the position of being unable to sign our big name free agents to extensions and coax others to move to the East Bay.
Yet, we still pledge allegiance to the green and gold, no matter who is on the field. But what about the former players off of it, and with this question, I specifically talk about Mark McGuire and Jose Canseco.
Known as the "Bash Brothers," the two will forever be a part of Athletics lore, however, the two have taken serious hits to their images over the last few years.
As a player, Canseco ran afoul of the law, had spousal abuse claims, crashed his sports car into a tree, which his then wife, Esther, claimed he was really gunning for her. There were even rumors of steroid use. But with victories and success comes the magical wand that waves and allows us to see through such transgressions so long as we continue to win.
McGuire remains as stoic a figure now as he was as a player, but he is a laughing stock amongst sportstalk radio hosts and even politicians everywhere. Once an intimidating figure in the batter's box, he was a chicken in front of Congress, backpedaling and sidestepping more than a Broadway dancer during the Tony Awards. Oh, but those moonshots into the left field deck...
Today, both players will find it extremely difficult to make the Hall of Fame. Once considered a virtual lock for the honor, McGuire was recently voted out for the second straight year - and there was no change in voting from last year.
So the question needs to be asked: When it comes to Mark McGuire and Jose Canseco, do you still pledge allagiance to them for what they did for the team?
Keywords: Hall of Fame, Jose Canseco, Mark McGuire, Oakland Athletics
