Baseball legend and poker fanatic Jose Canseco is set to join fellow sporting legends at Caesars Palace in a new interactive show, Renegades, which will allow the public an ‘up-close-and-personal’ interactive experience where ‘nothing is off-limits’ according to Caesars.com, Canseco himself tweeting…
The intimate setting of Caesar’s 180-seat Cleopatra’s Barge theatre will see Canseco joined by Jim McMahon, the famous Chicago Bears quarterback, as well as University of Michigan Wolverines Fab Five NBA legend Jimmy King – King set to share the 14-show run with NFL record-holder Terrell Owens.
“You think you know these athletes’ stories, but trust me, you have no idea,” the ‘Renegades’ show co-producer Rich Lenkov said. “Renegades will offer a unique entertainment experience, where some of the most infamous names in sports will take you through the highs and lows of their careers in an intimate setting.”
Marc Meltzer of Covers.com stated: ‘This show has the potential to be a trainwreck, awesome, or more likely both’, and given Canseco and his legendary counterparts histories he’s almost certainly correct – Canseco famously admitting to using performance-enhancing drugs about which he wrote a New York Times bestselling book, and has fought mixed martial arts fights including a loss to giant Korean Hong Man Choi.
Canseco and Poker
Compared to a past littered with high-profile baseball heroics and controversy, Canseco’s poker-playing days are incredibly subdued, preferring small-stakes tournaments at Caesars and other cardrooms frequented by friends – his $9057 recorded earnings dating back to his first cash of $3,250 at the California State Poker Championships in 2007.
Speaking to Canseco about poker, baseball betting and a variety of other matters last year, Meltzer says of the MLB legend:
"He prefers playing in smaller poker tournaments with under 100 players. The big tournaments take way too long. This is a way to get into the action but not be too tied up."
Meltzer adds that Canseco ‘isn’t a gambler by nature … doesn’t play blackjack, slots or bet on sports. Poker is the only game he plays in the casino’ …primarily because ‘there are so many angles and potential outcomes that the game is always different and interesting.
It’s unlikely that fans will get to share a normal poker table, however as:
“He'll be busy with the show and likely stick with charity tournaments if they're happening when he’s in town for 'Renegades'.”
The ‘Renegades’ run of shows kicked off on January 25th at 8pm and are expected to last about 2 hours each, with tickets on sale now for $75 and $100, with a $300 VIP package available which ‘includes VIP seating, a photo, merchandise and a meet and greet with the athletes in Montecristo Cigar Bar after the show’.