Jose Canseco's strength came from taking massive amounts of steroids. Mike Greenwell's strength came from wrestling alligators. In 1988, the pair placed one and two in the American League MVP race. Greenwell batted .325, hit 22 home runs, and knocked in 119 base runners. Canseco batted .307, hit 42 home runs, and knocked in 124 base runners. Did steroids rob Mike Greenwell of an MVP award?

"I do have a problem with losing the MVP to an admitted steroids user," Greenwell told a Florida newspaper. "I was clean. If they're going to start putting asterisks by things, let's put one by the MVP," the former left-fielder suggests.

The 1988 Red Sox were a special team. After a dismal first-half performance, the Sox replaced John McNamara with Joe Morgan. The Sox proceeded to win 19 of 20, and 24 straight at home. I got to witness a great deal of this in my first year as a vendor inside Fenway Park. On this special team--my favorite until the 2004 Sox--Mike Greenwell was a special player. Greenwell may be Jose Canseco's antithesis. In 1988, Gator set the American League record for game-winning RBIs (it still stands). Years later, Greenwell retired rather than play for an MLB team other than the Red Sox. Whereas Canseco struck out every fifth at-bat in '88, Greenwell amazingly struck out just once out of every thirteenth at-bat. But in the end, Canseco's A's swept Greenwell's Sox for the American League pennant.

Nearly seventeen years later, Greenwell asks: "Where's my MVP?" When Jose's book money runs out, Gator, you'll probably be able to find it on Ebay.

I still have that Mike Greenwell gator poster--you know the one of him standing in a swamp holding a baseball bat in one hand an an alligator in the other hand.

Say, if Greenwell gets the MVP award now, do you think the award recognition will influence the price of his trading cards? I've got about thirty Mike Greenwell rookie cards lying in a box in a dusty attic somewhere...

Who cares......Mattingly is still better.

I was listening to local sports radio the other day, and they were reading excerpts from Canseco's "book." They read one passage in which Canseco claims to have run a 3.9 40-yard-dash while on steroids. A 3.9! That's on the edge of human capability. Deion Sanders in his prime and on PCP couldn't run that fast. Need I say more about Jose's credibility?

Methinks Jose may have mistaken a 34-yard dash for a 40-yard dash.

It’s kind of sad that in this “all news, is bad news” culture we live in that this bum will sell boatloads of books and make himself a small fortune. He’s such a lying, disingenuous slime ball but it won’t matter as people will line up to get the dirt, true or not.

This is the same guy who was selling “A day with Jose” while he was in prison.

Need more be said?

A 3.9 40? No way Jose. Olympic sprinters can't run that fast, and they dope at least as much as professional baseball players.

I liked Greenwell back in the day, the game winning RBI stat is a real important one that no one talks about anymore. But I am with you Feck, Mattingly has always been my favorite ballplayer, I mimicked his swing as a kid and always insisted on playing first base.

It killed me every season when Boggs would end up with a higher batting average.

All I have to say, in hindsight, is that the man was robbed. I mean since Canseco was juicing and Greenie was doing things naturally... Shouldn't we recognize that in today's current sports environment that peformance enhancement drugs will scar your image forever. I mean look at the Olympics... Ben Johnson lost his gold medal because it was revealed that he was on some sort of juice... Why shouldn't the same standards apply to all sports? I think we must examine this issue closer since Canseco is now admitting fault.. same thing applies.. strip him of his glory and hand it to Greenie. Some may say this is wrong or cannot be done... I say heresy. This is the same standard as how the Olympics would handle the situation. Something to ponder...

While on the subject... pitchers and catchers report to spring training... Here we go again!!!

This will only be one of many players we will find that lost out on an award to someone who was juiced. It is ashame that sports has come to this. Mike Greenwell was a real team player. His staying with the Red Sox for a career is rare. He also never had an agent and sat down with the owner and worked out his own contract.