BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : AROUND THE MAJORS : And Now Pitching . . . Jose Canseco

Move over, Babe Ruth.

Power hitter Jose Canseco made his major league debut as a pitcher Saturday when he pitched the final inning of the Texas Rangers’ 15-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox at Boston.

Canseco walked the bases loaded and gave up three runs and two hits. He threw 33 pitches, 21 of which were out of the strike zone--many far out of the zone.

He bounced a pitch to Tony Pena and later threw a pitch so far inside to Andre Dawson that the Red Sox designated hitter began laughing.

“I left all my good stuff in the bullpen,” said Canseco, who looked awkward on the mound. “I ran out of gas.”

Canseco, who was hitless in four at-bats as the Rangers’ designated hitter, was greeted by a standing ovation at Fenway Park when he came on to pitch.

Canseco was a pitcher in high school and made a few mound appearances in the minors. He pitched a scoreless inning last month in an exhibition game against the Rangers’ triple-A club in Oklahoma City.

He had asked Texas Manager Kevin Kennedy several times this spring to give him an appearance on the mound, and Kennedy decided the time was right when the Rangers were trailing, 12-1, heading into the eighth inning.

Kennedy said he used Canseco because he didn’t want to wear out his overused bullpen, and also because he wanted to make a statement to the rest of his players. He was furious at his other pitchers for continually falling behind Red Sox hitters.

“This was not a joke,” Kennedy said.

As Canseco answered questions in the Texas locker room after the game, teammate Rafael Palmeiro sat nearby and shook his head in wonder at the media attention being given to the Rangers’ newest pitcher.

“It’s because they love me,” Canseco explained. “I’ve got that pizazz they love to write about.”

By the way, Canseco’s earned-run average is 27.00.