ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Jose Canseco can't help but wonder if he's played his last game.
The Tampa Bay Devil Rays designated hitter said Monday that he will do everything he can to try to return to the team after back surgery, but conceded that retirement is an option he might have to consider.
"My body has failed me again," Canseco said during a telephone conference call from his hospital bed in Fort Lauderdale, where he had a 90-minute operation Sunday to repair a herniated disc.
"This to me is a nightmare with the year I'm having, the consistency I've had ... The timing couldn't be worse," he added. "I was given all the ability in the world. Not to be able to use it is one of the worst things that can happen to a human being."
Canseco leads the AL with 31 homers and was selected as the league's starting designated hitter for Tuesday night's All-Star game in Boston.
He apologized to fans who voted for him and who were also hoping to see him in Monday night's home run derby competition at Fenway Park.
"Obviously I'm depressed," his weakened voice reflecting his disappointment as well as the medication given to him following surgery. "I can't believe this happened."
Canseco and the Devil Rays are not certain what caused the intense pain that left the 35-year-old no alternative than to undergo surgery similar to the operation he had for a ruptured disc on his left side in 1996.
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