As you all know, Sammy Sosa announced his retirement last Thursday, much to the surprise of baseball fans (and apparently GM's), who already thought he was retired. Since then, the Cublogosphere has been a buzz about the announcement.
Actually, it really hasn't. The sports world itself hasn't even really cared that much about the story. Besides a bunch of good memories over at ACB, most Cub fans paused for a second and then quickly returned to the ledges to which they are prepared to jump off of.
It's amazing how the greatest hitter in the history of the Cubs has now fallen upon deaf ears and blind eyes. Sammy was the face of the franchise in the 90's. He was everyone's favorite player. He won games with his bat. We loved the hop, the double kiss, the swagger.
He and Big Mac single-handedly (double-handedly?) brought back the fans to the game of baseball. Not just Cub fans, all baseball fans. When the game was tarnished by the player's strike, the home run battle between the two captured the nation. While McGuire won in the end, to Cub fans Sosa was the real winner.
The fans were back. Wrigley was selling out again. Everyone was wearing #21 jerseys. The man could do no wrong. He was to be forever loved by those who bleed Cubbie blue, a Cub favorite, joining the likes of Mr. Cub, Billy Williams, Santo, Ryno, the Hawk and Mad Dog.
And then it happened.
In 2003, in the midst of a slump, Sosa "accidentally" picked up the wrong bat and headed to the plate. When the bat shattered, so did Sosa's image, and it would never be the same. Not for sport's fans, and not for Cub fans. While we tried to play it off and believe in Sosa, we were on the road to no recovery. Like a bad ex, the lies and suspicion started to mount. Steroids were just becoming part of the mainstream discussions on baseball, and we couldn't deny that Sammy looked a little bigger than his early days with the South Side Meth Heads.
By 2004 Sammy's numbers, and the Cubs, just weren't the same. Coming off the magical '03 season, the Cubs couldn't keep the good thing going. Things needed to change. And so speculation of Sammy not returning the following year began to grow. On the last day of the season, a game the Cubs won, Sammy did not play. In fact, Sammy wasn't even in the dugout, nor the clubhouse. No, Sammy had left the building. Early in fact, during the first inning. After the game a Cub player(s) took a bat to Sammy's boom box, forever ridding the clubhouse of the cancer, controversy and bad attitude he had become.
So now, 5 years later we are back to Sammy. In his mind, he is a shoe-in for the Hall.
"I will calmly wait for my induction to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Don't I have the numbers to be inducted?" Sosa said.
Hard to believe when Big Mac hasn't even come close his first 3 years.
Lee wants the Cubs and fans to appreciate Sosa, even give him a day of honor. But is this really what Cub fans want? Personally, I think it's still too soon. Maybe when we look back 10 years from now, when virtually every player of the 90s has been accused or indicted for using steroids, we won't mind as much.
Who knows if Cub fans will ever appreciate Sosa as much as they did when he was hitting 20 home runs a month. I highly doubt his #21 will ever fly over a foul pole. I don't think he will be inducted into the HOF within his lifetime. Do I believe, like Sosa, that he has the numbers to get in? Of course. But his antics, combined with the "speculation" of his steroid use will prevent it, at least in the distant future.
So what do you think Cub fans: good guy who was misunderstood at the end, or bad guy who was a cancer on the team and tarnished the Cubs good name?
Share on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.
4 comments:
Ah, yes. Sammy Sosa. The thinking chode's chode.
If, as you say, you "loved the hop, the double kiss, the swagger", then I recommend that you hop on a landmine. Make sure to take Sammy with you.
Watching that home run race was like watching an ex-girlfriend fuck herself with a plaster reproduction of Steve's dick: although viscerally appealing on some base level, deeply unsatisfying and vaguely homoerotic.
Sammy Sosa represents attention whoredom brought to its 90's-era maximums. Go ahead and extrapolate the trendlines-- you'll understand why I personally blame him for the rise of MySpace and Twitter.
None of the cunts wearing the #21 jerseys even cared about who ultimately won the games. The home run numbers kept getting bigger and bigger, just like an Asian guy switching from inches to centimeters when he's measuring his dick. Bigger numbers are better, right?
So what do you think Cub fans: good guy who was misunderstood at the end, or bad guy who was a cancer on the team and tarnished the Cubs good name?
If I were a betting man, I'd go with "good guy who was a misunderstood faggot". Second choice would simply be the word "faglips".
What!!
Asian penis very well function. Look toward Asia population Stupid Roundeye Man!
Would Nomand and/or Dong (if you are two different people) please email us at collegeofidiots at gmail dot com?
It's how you choose to remember him. I have far more positive memories of him rather than the corked bat or leaving early bit. Let's face it, for many years he was one of the few reasons to watch the Cubs. And I think by-and-large, he played hard, which unfortunately is something that's a rare and admirable thing in today's game.
Post a Comment