Did Chicago Cubs leave the door open for Sosa to return?

Are the Chicago Cubs leaving open the possibility of a Sammy Sosa return?

After last night’s premiere of Long Gone Summer, the conversation about Sammy Sosa returning to the Chicago Cubs is back in the spotlight. Perhaps it was the nostalgia of reliving that magical summer of 1998 in which Sosa and close friend Mark McGwire battled for the single-season home run record in a chase that captivated fans and even saved baseball.

However, it seems to go deeper than that, as Cubs’ fans seemed to have wanted Sosa back for many years, despite the organizations reticence.

The Cubs have had no trouble putting fans in the seats at Wrigley Field recently, but it’s easy to forget that prior to Sosa’s arrival, it wasn’t that way. But Sosa’s charismatic presence, his spectacular play and that magical 1998 season, were primarily responsible for bringing the fans back.

In short, Sosa’s impact on the Cubs’ organization is almost immeasurable, and yet, the Cubs have been steadfast in refusing to entertain the thought of bringing him back into the fold. It seems as though the organization is looking for Sosa to admit he used steroids and apologize for those transgressions.

Setting aside for the moment the fact that he has never tested positive, it seems disingenuous for the Cubs to make such a demand considering they benefitted tremendously from this era in which all teams turned a blind eye to the obvious.

Despite enriching themselves deeply from Sosa’s time with the organization, they have seemingly gone out of their way to distance themselves from Sammy.

However, just before the premiere of the documentary, the Cubs tweeted out a highlight reel of Sosa’s home runs in 1998 simply with the message “’98 Sammy.”

While it may seem like a very small, or insignificant gesture, the fact that they acknowledged Sammy publicly in this manner is somewhat of a big deal for the Cubs. Yes, it still falls far short of the mark, and the reality is they should be actively working on Sosa’s return, but if nothing else, it may be a sign that the Cubs are softening on the idea of bringing him back.

Sosa wants to be back, and the fans overwhelmingly want him back. It’s time for the Cubs to give the people what they want.