The A’s new broadcast team, Jose Canseco, and the internet at large

The internet is a terrible place. But sometimes, the internet is a great place. No one is a better example of that than Jose Canseco, the newest member of the A’s broadcast team. Canseco will participate on the A’s pre and post-game shows, which are now scheduled to go an hour long. He’ll appear via satellite from his home in Las Vegas, cause Jose Canseco rules and because of course he lives in Las Vegas. If you’re wondering if that’s a ban from the state of California sort of thing, the answer is no as Canseco will be at the Coliseum for Opening Day.

Dallas Braden and Dave Stewart will be joining the pregame show as well. Stew is coming off an, um, tumultuous run as GM of the DBacks. He’s probably more suited for a role as an analyst, and I think he’ll be a nice addition to what already sounds like an enhanced viewing experience.

Braden is expecting a child, one whom the A’s should sign to a contract the moment she or he departs from the womb. The Braden family is planning on being “responsible parents” or whatever so his time on the broadcast team is limited, slated right now to be 15 games next year.

Frankly, it’s not clear how good any of these dudes will be. On field excellence doesn’t necessarily translate to acumen in the booth (see Rose, Pete) and who knows, it might be disastrous. But it’s still exciting news in an offseason that’s been good to us A’s fans off the field, as there’s clear effort being placed to improve fan experience and make the team more marketable.

Jose Canseco rules the internet

On the fabulous website Reddit, celebrities participate in Ask Me Anythings (AMAs). Most AMAs are boring, some are thinly veiled advertisements, but sometimes, oh sometimes AMAs are gold mines. Jose Canseco’s was pure, uncensored gold.

The following is a little less appropriate than your typical AthleticsNation dot com post. A warning, if you will, as Jose promises to be uncensored on TV. Excuse me, non-censored?

“It’s going to be interesting. . . . I think what I’ve always brought is honesty — I’m going to call it like I see it. Fans are going to get a non-censored, very analytical opinion.”

(Jose Canseco, Dallas Braden among A’s studio analysts, SFGate.com by Susan Slusser, March 27, 2017)

Here are some of the great moments from Jose’s Reddit foray.

The URL is fuego.

He’ll provide us with creative ideas as to how the A’s can optimize their less than ideal payroll

When not knowing is better than knowing.

This incredible exchange

On Nolan Ryan, fights, and homeruns bouncing off your head dear God

A little biology humor

No explanation needed.

That’s three years old and likely in a museum in Paris by now. Good news for you rare art collectors out there, Jose isn’t done yet. And the art is only getting better.

The movie? Documentary?

I’m not sure how I didn’t know Canseco had a “movie” until I started “researching” for this “article”, but discovering this was a big win.

Before you cast it off as some sort of gimmick or bad movie, know that this is an award winning film. Specifically, it won the award for Best Documentary at the prestigious Boston International Film Fastival!

Please share your best Jose Canseco internet moments in the comments. When Jose Canseco talks, we all win. Here’s a link to the full AMA, and here’s the best way to search directly for his comments.

By the way, I am legitimately very excited for Jose Canseco to join the team. He’s honest, he’s funny albeit not always intentionally, and he’s entertaining. It’s just a game after all, designed solely for our gawking purposes, and Jose will undoubtedly be entertaining.

Editor’s Note: This article has been edited to clarify the quote from Jose Canseco regarding his new TV role was reported by Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.