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Sammy Sosa, the Chicago Cubs’ all-time home run leader, has finally, sort of, acknowledged what everyone has always assumed: that he did PEDs. Though that isn’t exactly what he said.
Instead, in a new open apology letter, the long-exiled Sosa admitted doing “whatever” he could to keep his “strength up” during his playing days.
“I left it all on the field for the Cubs and Cubs fans because I wanted to win and make the fans happy,” Sammy Sosa said Thursday in his letter. “I love to see the fans at Wrigley Field in the Right Field Bleachers every home game.
“I understand why some players in my era don’t always get the recognition that our stats deserve,” Sammy Sosa continued. “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.
“We accomplished great things as a team, and I worked extremely hard in the batting cage to become a great hitter.
“Cubs’ fans are the best in the world, and I hope that fans, the Cubs and I can all come together again and move forward. We can’t change the past, but the future is bright. In my heart, I have always been a Cub and can’t wait to see Cubs fans again.”
Full statement pic.twitter.com/Hx7RxSxvim
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) December 19, 2024
The now 56-year-old Sosa had been persona non grata at Wrigley Field ever since Tom Ricketts bought the Chicago Cubs in 2009. When the Cubs traded Sosa to the Baltimore Orioles in 2004 after a significant falling out with the team, many fences had to be mended.
Rickets had publicly stated that Sammy Sosa wasn’t welcome around the team until he admitted what he did.
“I really believe all the players from that era … I think we owe them a lot of understanding,” Ricketts said at the Cubs Convention in 2018. “We have to put ourselves in their shoes and be very, very sympathetic to everything, all the decisions they had to make, and certainly as it turned out, after testing had begun in 2002, a large number of players test positive …. Players from that era owe us a little bit of honesty. The only way to turn that page is to put everything on the table.”
On Thursday, following the release of Sammy Sosa’s apology letter, Tom Ricketts was singing a different tune.
“We appreciate Sammy releasing his statement and for reaching out,” Rickets said in a press release. “No one played harder or wanted to win more. Nobody’s perfect, but we never doubted his passion for the game and the Cubs.
“It is an understatement to say that Sammy is a fan favorite. We plan on inviting him to the 2025 Cubs Convention and, while it is short notice, we hope that he can attend. We are all ready to move forward together.”