Jose Canseco Grabbed All the Headline(r)s
He practically forced Fleer's insert-card hand
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1987 Fleer Headliners Jose Canseco (#2) - Card of the Day
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If there was one baseball player you could count on to make headlines in the late 1980s, it was Oakland A’s slugger Jose Canseco.
Starting with his late 1985 debut that produced a .302/5 HR/13 RBI line, Canseco would become one of the hottest properties in the game and the hobby for the next half decade.
Following on the heels of a powerful romp through Oakland’s minor league system that included 35 combined homers as a 20-year-old in 1985, that cup of coffee scalded the hot stove heading into the winter. And, when Canseco’s first major league baseball cards hit Fleer and Donruss wax packs in the spring of 1986, the collector frenzy pushed the out-of-pack prices to $3+ in a hurry.
Canseco grudgingly surrendered a bit of his rookie spotlight to upstart Wally Joyner early in 1986, but by the end of the season, the man who would later become known as The Chemist had conquered all frosh: .240 batting average, but with 33 home runs, 117 RBI, and 15 stolen bases. Add in 65 walks to boost his on-base percentage to .318 and his gargantuan home runs, and you had one of the most exciting players in the game.
Even if he was a born left fielder and a wind machine in the batter’s box.
And, of course, Jose was already starting to build a reputation for his swagger, mouth, and off-field activities. Where there was a baseball headline, you could be sure Jose Canseco wasn’t far behind.
So it was no surprise when Fleer featured Canseco in their 1987 Headliners insert set, available only in that year’s cello packs. Why, it was only a quirk of alphabetization fate that Jose didn’t lead off for the six-card lineup:
#1 Wade Boggs
#2 Jose Canseco
#6 Jim Rice
You can see Jose on his Headliner up there at the top of this post. Knowing what we know now, Canseco looks pretty unassuming against the Atari-cartridge setting of the card, maybe notwithstanding that triceps winking at us from underneath his jersey sleeve.
The back of the card gives us a rundown on most of the headline moments from Jose’s then-brief resume and even informs us of the existence of twin brother Osvaldo — better known to most fans of the era as Ozzie.
In 1987, though, that part of the crazy train still lay ahead for most collectors.
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The Headliners set itself built on a bit of hobby history that Fleer tapped into beginning in 1986 with their All Star Team and Future Hall of Famers, often considered the first true chase cards in the hobby.
And as for the man himself, we’d soon find out that the founding member of the Bash Brothers was usually up for a good chase himself: on the base paths, behind the wheel of a rocket, in da club, staring up at 500 home runs.
Today, though, Jose and Ozzie can at least stop their chase for 61. Because today, the Canseco brothers turn 61 years old.
1983 Fritsch Jose Canseco Madison Muskies Beat the Crowd
Jose was a bit shaggier on his first baseball card, a 1983 minor league issue brought to us by a hobby legend — Larry Fritsch. You can read more about that card right here.
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I also came across this Base Brothers T-Shirt from Homage — it’s a pretty fun website overall, with lots of “vintage” looking swag. Check out the shirt here (affiliate link), and shop around while you’re there.
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