ANGELS NOTEBOOK: CANSECO, VAUGHN SHOW UP.

Byline: Joe Haakenson Staff Writer

TEMPE, Ariz. - Two former American League MVPs found their way to the Angels' spring-training facility for the first time this season on Wednesday. But only one stuck around long enough to take a few cuts in the batting cage.

The first Jose Canseco sighting was at 11:08 a.m., when the 36-year-old DH ran onto the field at Tempe Diablo Stadium, shook hands with bullpen catcher Orlando Mercado and played catch with trainer Ned Bergert.

Canseco, an AL MVP with the Oakland A's in 1988, also fielded fly balls in the outfield and took batting practice. Canseco felt good after his first workout and greeted Mo Vaughn, who stopped by on his way to the doctor.

Vaughn, an MVP with the Red Sox in 1995, had his stitches removed and was fitted with a new brace for his left arm. He had surgery on Feb. 6 to repair a ruptured biceps tendon and is out for the season.

Vaughn said he felt a pop in his biceps area during a swing last August but played through the pain. He was diagnosed by Angels trainers with tendinitis but didn't have an in-depth examination until January, when the damage was discovered.

``I didn't realize the seriousness of the situation and continued to play,'' Vaughn said. ``I blame nobody in this situation. It's not the Angels' fault, it's nobody's fault. The trainers have been good to me ever since I've been here.''

But there was something obviously wrong. Vaughn hit only .193 in September and October.

``I wracked my brain many times last year, looking at film, trying to figure out what I was doing wrong,'' Vaughn said. ``The fact of the matter is I was swinging with one hand. I had to realize that.

``Some people might ask, 'Are you that hard-headed? Are you that stupid? You don't stop.' But I don't know another way to do it.''

Vaughn admitted the severely sprained ankle that hampered him all of 1999 might have affected his thinking last year.

``I don't like doctors, period,'' he said. ``I don't like ice, I don't like medicine.''

--Traveling guy: The Angels are Canseco's seventh major-league team and his sixth different team in six years.

``I think I know everybody in the league now,'' he said. ``I wouldn't expect to be on the same team in back-to-back years. I'm definitely used to (changing teams).''

Canseco said he weighs 242 pounds, 20 pounds lighter than his playing weight last season. He has given up weightlifting for a program geared toward baseball skills, which includes an emphasis on flexibility, in an effort to avoid the injuries that have slowed him in recent seasons.

``I haven't lifted weights in eight months, I haven't touched a weight,'' he said. ``I've tried everything (to avoid injuries). This is the only thing I haven't tried. Twenty pounds of solid muscle mass is a lot to lose. But if you don't have any muscle, you can't pull it.''

Canseco, though, hasn't lost any of the confidence that helped him become an All-Star and the first player to hit 40 homers and steal 40 bases in the same season. Even though the Angels signed him to a minor-league contract, Canseco said the Angels know what he's capable of.

``It's not a sense of what I can do now, it's a sense of staying healthy,'' he said. ``That has been my demon. I don't think anybody doubts my ability. Injuries have kept me from hitting 500, 600 home runs and kept me from being one of the superstars of baseball.