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Sammy Sosa
Sergi Alexander/FilmMagicFormer Chicago Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa says he “made mistakes” during his 18-year career in Major League Baseball in a statement that some observers interpreted as confirmation of prior steroid use.
Sosa, 56, has hit 609 career home runs, good for ninth on MLB’s all-time list. But as dominant as he was, his legacy was tarnished by allegations that he used steroids, most notably during the famous 1998 chase when he and Mark McGwire St. Louis Cardinals both broke the then single season home run record.
McGwire finished that season with a then-record 70, while Sosa hit 66. He retired in 2007 and is not in the Hall of Fame due to suspected use of performance-enhancing drugs.
“I understand why some players in my era don’t get the recognition our stats deserve,” Sosa said Thursday, Dec. 19.
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He added: “There were times when I was doing everything I could to recover from injury, trying to keep my strength up and play more than 162 games. I have never broken any laws. But in retrospect I made mistakes and I’m sorry.”
Sammy Sosa
Focus Sport/Getty ImagesSosa spent 13 seasons with cubsone of the most famous franchises in American sports, and the team seems ready to welcome him back.
“We appreciate Sammy releasing his statement and reaching out to us,” the Cubs owner Tom Ricketts he said in a statement on Thursday. “No one played harder or wanted to win more. No one is perfect, but we never doubted his passion for the game and the Cubs. To say Sammy is a fan favorite is an understatement.”
Sammy Sosa
Focus on Sport/Getty ImagesWhether he is or not, Sosa has an important place in baseball history. His home run chase with McGwire is widely credited with helping bring popularity back to Major League Baseball after the 1994 strike canceled that year’s World Series.
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“We’ve done great things as a team and I’ve worked extremely hard in the batting cage to become a great hitter,” his statement continued. “Cubs fans are the best in the world and I hope that the fans, the Cubs and I can all come together again and move forward. We can’t change the past, but the future is bright. I’ve always been a Cub in my heart and I can’t wait to see Cubs fans again.”
Sosa’s statement comes nearly 20 years after he testified before Congress as the true extent of MLB’s steroid problem came into focus.
“To be clear,” he said at the time, “I have never taken illegal performance-enhancing drugs. I have never injected myself, nor have anyone injected anything.’
The Cubs extended Sosa an invitation to appear at the 2025 Cubs Convention from January 17-19, where he is expected to reunite with the team and its fans.
