Posted on 02/17/2006 4:55:11 AM PST by Neville72
MESA, Ariz. (AP) -- Sammy Sosa was once one of baseball's most popular figures, a prodigious home run hitter who raced enthusiastically to his position and tapped his heart to salute adoring fans in the Wrigley Field bleachers.
Now one season after his bitter departure from the Chicago Cubs, the 37-year-old Sosa is probably headed to retirement, his days of circling the bases over.
If that is the case, he leaves behind a conflicting legacy.
"I imagine it's frustrating when you get to this point in your career and you can't get a guaranteed contract. I can't imagine what that would be like for him and I feel for him, I really do," Cubs catcher Michael Barrett said.
"He's had a great career and unfortunately with the way the game has gone -- let's be truthful -- the way the game has gone, it hasn't helped him in any regard and I feel for him in that way, too."
Sosa and Mark McGwire helped energize baseball and fill the stadiums with an epic home run duel in 1998, four years after a strike left many fans disillusioned.
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But with baseball mired in accusations that star players used steroids, Sosa was among the players called to testify before a congressional committee last March. McGwire refused to answer questions about past steroid use. Sosa said he never used illegal steroids.
"I listen to talk shows all the time and I hear a lot of things about how fans are disappointed about how Sammy's career has ended and how they've been disappointed," Barrett said.
"And a lot of people are judgmental, judging that he was a steroid guy and they said a lot of things that I feel are not appropriate at this point in his career. I don't think it's fair. Say what you want to say about the corked bat, that's one instance. That was one mistake he made.
"But overall you look at the career he had, and he had a tremendous career. He gave a lot to this organization and the organization gave a lot to him."
Sosa is 12 homers shy of 600 -- 545 of them with the Cubs. From 1998-2002, Sosa hit 292 homers. And he is the only player in major league history to have three seasons of at least 60 homers.
Then there is the other side. There was his use of a corked bat during a game in 2003 and subsequent suspension. If some Cubs fans forgave that, they turned on him the following season when his numbers began to decline.
Slowed by a sore back brought on by a violent sneezing attack, he batted just .253 and in 126 games finished with 35 homers and 80 RBIs in 2004. Boos began to pour down.
His quirks -- a home run hop, blowing kisses in rapid succession after retuning to the dugout, tapping his heart and racing to right field like a sprinter before each game -- grew old to some.
And it was no secret that his boom box that often sent out loud music throughout the clubhouse was not always popular with his teammates.
When he skipped out early from the regular-season finale in 2004 and then lashed out at manager Dusty Baker for blaming him for the Cubs failures, his days in Chicago were soon to be over.
Traded to the Orioles, he struggled again last season with his bat and his health, hitting .221 with 14 homers and 45 RBIs.
"I thought he'd be playing," said former Orioles manager Lee Mazzilli, adding that there was "no question" Sosa could still contribute.
"I hope he plays. He's a good guy. When you get old, injuries can creep up on you."
Sam Perlozzo, who replaced Mazzilli as the Orioles skipper, said Sosa could be leaving because he knows it's time.
"Obviously Sammy is a very proud guy. It seemed to me if he's going to retire, then he probably doesn't feel like he's going to be as productive as he wants," he said.
"For that, you give him credit, a pat on the back. I would have liked to have seen the guy do a little bit better in his last year. He did a lot for the game, and we're going to miss a good player."
After turning down an non-guaranteed offer from the Washington Nationals, Sosa is probably headed to retirement, according to his agent Adam Katz.
"I've seen some greats leave the game. You never want to see them leave and you'd rather see them leave on their terms and leave on top," Baker said Thursday, still not convinced Sosa was through playing.
"It's not over with yet. You don't know if somebody is going to offer Sammy a job here soon or what is going to happen. But Sammy has been one of the great players of the game for a long time and a guy who meant a lot to Chicago and a lot to the game. ... I just hope he gets a job somewhere."
So does Mets general manager Omar Minaya, who was responsible for Sosa signing with the Texas Rangers, his first team.
"I hope that's not the case. I hope that he will be given the opportunity to play," Minaya said Thursday from Port St. Lucie, Fla.
"He's done a lot of great things for baseball."
Kerry Wood was a rookie in 1998 when Sosa and McGwire put on their epic home run duel.
"It was fun to be a part of that," Wood said.
"Like I always said about Sammy, he came ready to play. No matter what kind of person he was, no matter what people wrote about him, (what) people said about him, he was ready to play for 162 games every day. And I still have yet to see somebody prepare the way he did."
AP Sports Writers Mike Fitzpatrick, David Ginsburg and Ronald Blum contributed to this report.
Roidheads all who should never see the Hall of Fame.
poor Corky....
another juicer bites the dust.
Re the bodybuilder pic: Are those real? You didn't photoshop that just a bit?
http://www.greggvalentino.net
The first sign of the sports writers doing their duty...is the first vote for McGuire. I would hope that the guy gets less than 3 percent of the vote, and a clear signal is sent. To sit there and play this game with Pete Rose...and not hold Baseball's image up...is totally wrong. If all five had achieved their results without steriods...I'd have no problem in them making it...but with the steriods...its a "no" vote for me.
Amazing just how much this flaxseed oil has changed our physiques, huh?"
When asked difficult questions, Sosa tends to fall back into the line of I don't speak english. lol
He's potentially the most arrogant person in sports. Good riddens to bad trash ...
Re Valentino: I checked the site. He must have some weird psychological problem. Technically, its surprising he hasn't broken bones or ruptured his tendons if he ever used those biceps for anything.
This is the last photo taken before his surgery: 
It's amazing how the mighty have fallen. I remember the summer of '98 like it was yesterday. Mcguire and Sosa were like Kings. Combine the homerun race with my NY Yankees winning practically every day..... it was a magical summer. :)
I believe McGwire's on the ballot for next year, and I think that will set the standard, going forward, for who gets in and who doesn't.
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