La Russa- Canseco said in Oakland that he had 'helper'

NEW YORK -- Jose Canseco bragged about not having to work out as hard as other players on the Oakland Athletics because he had a "helper," his former manager, Tony La Russa, said in an interview with "60 Minutes Wednesday."

La Russa managed Canseco and the Athletics to three consecutive AL pennants from 1988 to 1990, winning the World Series in 1989. La Russa's interview was broadcast Wednesday night on CBS, three days after the network aired an interview with Canseco, who has admitted using performance-enhancing drugs and accused several former teammates of the same.

La Russa, now manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, told "60 Minutes Wednesday" that Canseco would boast about not needing a lot of time in the gym to build his strength.

"He would laugh about the time that other guys were spending there, and how he didn't have to, because he was, he was doing the other 'helper,'" La Russa said. "He was having help in a different way. You know, the easy way."

Sandy Alderson, executive vice president for baseball operations in the commissioner's office, said Major League Baseball has no record of being contacted during the mid-1990s by an FBI agent who told the New York Daily News he warned baseball about steroid use among players.