Chicago Cubs legend Sammy Sosa has had an estranged relationship with the organization since his retirement in 2007. And on Thursday, he finally opened up about why that may be the case.
Sosa, a seven-time MLB All-Star, has remained a controversial figure in baseball due to his alleged steroid use throughout his tenure in Chicago, though he had never admitted to taking the banned substances.
That all changed on Thursday when Sosa alluded to steroid use playing a factor in his strained relationship with the Cubs organization.
In a statement to Jesse Rogers of ESPN, Sosa essentially admitted to steroid use, detailing how he did “whatever he could” to keep his strength up to perform over the course of a season while he was in Chicago.
“There were times I did whatever I could to recover from injuries in an effort to keep my strength up to perform over 162 games. I never broke any laws but in hindsight, I made mistakes and I apologize.”
You will notice that Sosa never directly mentioned the use of steroids outright here. But you can quite clearly read between the lines here…
It obviously doesn’t help that Sosa of course tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in 2003. But now, it seems like he is able to own up to it without outright saying the word steroids.
Much like some of the other greats of baseball including Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, and Mark McGwire, Sosa likely would have been an excellent player without the use of performance-enhancing drugs.
But regardless, the use of steroids always casts doubt as to how things would have played out without the advantage Sosa had over some other players.
Sosa’s steroid use is undeniably a clear black mark on his legacy as a player, which is perhaps why he still has not and likely will never be inducted into the Cubs Hall of Fame, much less the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
