Sammy Sosa will go down in Chicago Cubs history for all of the wrong reasons. He had a tough departing with the organization, tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs and of course the corked bat incident. It is impossible to talk about Sosa without mentioning the bad times, but when things were good, boy were they good.
Sosa was a solid 30-40 home run hitter for the Chicago Cubs from 1993-1997. He was a relatively strong overall player who played strong outfield defense, hit for a strong average and could steal bases. However, in 1998 everything changed.
Sosa and Mark McGwire went back and forth in the 1998 home run chase that changed baseball. Sosa hit an incredible 66 home runs that season, crushing the former major league single season record of 61. As you know, McGwire topped Sosa, hitting 70 bombs himself. The Cubs slugger did take home the National League MVP for his play that season.
The Cubs all-time leader in home runs then went on arguably the greatest power surge in the history of the game. Sosa hit 66 home runs in 1998 and followed that up with 63 homers in 1999, 50 in 2000, 64 in 2001 and 49 in 2002.
Even as his skills clearly started to decline, Sosa hit 40 home runs for the Cubs in 2003 and 35 in 2004. Sammy Sosa during that stretch in the late 90s-early 200s was one of the most incredible power hitters that game of baseball has ever seen.
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His raw power to all fields was absolutely incredible and he knew how to have fun while playing the game. His hop after every home run was legendary as was the way he sprinted out to right field to lead the Cubs on the field for every game.
Sosa’s legacy was tarnished by the drug use and other issues, and that is clearly part of the story. However, do not forget how much fun it was to watch him play. Sammy Sosa helped save the game of baseball and undoubtedly plays an important part in the history of the Chicago Cubs.