Sammy Sosa Did Nothing Wrong* | Baseball Bits

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Sammy Sosa did nothing wrong. It's a strong claim. Between the Sammy Sosa corked bat, Sammy Sosa congress, and Sammy Sosa steroid suspicions, he's gotten a bad reputation. Now a pariah, Sosa appears in baseball contexts and is barred from participating in the Sammy Sosa Cubs organization.

The steroid era in Major League Baseball hasn't been squared away, and possibly never will be, but I believe no player has gotten the short end of the stick more than Sammy Sosa. You can check his Sammy Sosa Hall of Fame ballot performances to be sure of that.

Perhaps it's time to forgive, but perhaps there's nothing to forgive at all. As you'll learn in this episode of Baseball Bits, a Foolish Baseball production, the corked bat was likely an isolated incident, the testifying to Congress has largely been misconstrued (especially with regards to the English language), and the ties to PEDs from the MLB 2003 testing aren't reliable. It's the same connection David Ortiz had.

Finally, yes, he has Sammy Sosa lighter skin. He doesn't quite look like the guy who starred for the Cubs and Sammy Sosa White Sox. But that's not really a baseball issue, right?
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Soundtrack from Maxo:

[northstarjakobs]

So glad that the whole thing about English being Sosa's second language was brought up. Any legal setting is the most important place to not have your words misconstrued, and one of the many, many reasons why lawyers exist is to communicate clearly on behalf of their clients in the dialect of Legal English (which you could make a solid argument is indeed a dialect from a linguistic perspective). Preparing a statement to be read by your legal counsel is fairly common practice in the court of law, and does not make Sosa a shady character as a result. Honestly, this is one of my favorite Baseball Bits so far; it strays from the usual stats-heavy approach (which I love dearly) and in doing so takes some great creative risks that I think paid off!

[ieatopps]

“My beautiful daughter poop love her very much” might be a top 5 athlete tweet

[VictoryDayz]

Thank you for the videos! I have started doing videos a few weeks back, and I have been watching some of your videos. Thanks for the inspiration!

[andrewellington]

I am so glad you addressed the second language point. If you play baseball your whole life and mostly in a country with a different language, odds are you're gonna pick enough of the language to get through a post game interview. However, trusting your fluency enough to appear before congress, where the slightest mistake will be pounced on and magnified is a WHOLE different ballgame.

[poshko]

What was said about Sosa's English fluency is spot on. Having said that, he could have requested an interpreter and answered the questions in Spanish.

[kami_in_the_skye]

7:27 Best use of the Fighting Baseball player names ever.

[AlexCasebeer]

Thank you Slammin Sammy. You helped get me into this sport when I was a kid and I will never forget emulating your home run hop when playing wiffle ball in the back yard. I think it’s unfair how the league and cubs organization have treated you, and for that I am sorry. But I thank you for making the game fun, and making it cool to be a Cubs fan. The Rickets family have done you unjustly wrong and I hope, for the sake of the fans, they can rectify their errors before it’s too late.

[JamesTundra]

7:21 "conspiracies against the New York Mets" why you gotta do my team like that 😭😭😭

[MidwestArtMan]

I'm guessing the prosecutors had no repercussions for unlawfully seizing information other than, "You can't put that in the case."

[kevinandrewsphoto]

Btw I’ve been subbed to you since the Verlander video I believe. And I just noticed I was somehow unsubscribed from you. Noticed that for 2 other channels as well.

[Microbaul]

I wouldn't be surprised if foolish manages to single-handedly write another person into the HOF like he did Larry Walker

[davesoverthere]

This just successfully convinced one hard-line anti-steroid baseball fan that Sammy Sosa belongs in the HoF.
I was ten when he and McGwire were chasing Maris' record and it invigorated my love for the game. Then when the Mitchell report and the corked bat happened, I completely wrote him off as a cheater. I think I was wrong.
On a related note, Gary Sheffield was named in the Mitchell report and he admitted to steroid use (supposedly unknowingly) to recover from an injury, but I have felt for a long time that he also deserves a plaque in Cooperstown.

[aaronproctor]

Around 10:40 you begin to talk about players becoming bigger and longer sustained peaks at older ages.

Everyone fills out to a heavier frame as they get older. Go look at some of your teenage photos and you'll see. So PEDs is a huge jump because someone got bigger. Of course they did! These are professional athletes who constantly train.

Also sustained peaks in baseball does not correlate to drug use. I personally feel that baseball is a veterans sport. Baseball is a mental game, so having time in service let's you see the game differently than when you were a young 20 yr old knucklehead.

[calebthespy]

I'm convinced. And you nailed it with the David Ortiz comparison! I think there is a much more compelling argument that he was a PED user but he gets a pass.

[dirkdiggler]

Another Foolish Baseball video about the shady side of baseball; another day of me asking the MLB to have a Black List Hall of Fame.

[reynoldkissling]

7:31 Love the MLBPA Baseball reference. Sleve McDichael is my secret alter ego

[lporter]

i’d know that jose ramirez silhouette anywhere

[ppaiDragon]

Wow @foolishBaseball I thought Sosa was a dirty cheater like the rest and now I feel sad for the poor guy. You know that all major sports are just kids game when there is no definitive evidence that you committed a wrongful act willingly and yet so sad writers decide that you're guilty by association and will not be allowed to join the HoF.

I guess if Sosa were playing for a heavy weight team (NYY/BRS/LAD/SFG/etc.) he'd have gotten all the accolades that Bonds & Ortiz got with the plausible deniability. Thanks for sharing another mind opening story. Keep up the great work!

[JohnD]

Sosa is the reason i fell in love with baseball at the age of 5. Idc what anyone says, i dont believe he took ped’s knowingly/willingly, and the corked bat actually takes away exit velocity. It may swing faster, but not being a solid, one piece bat, u wont get the exit speed u would with a regular wood bat.

[fredflux]

It’s a rift in the game- let them all in, let the fans of the era have their moment, and allow the game (full of players on PEDs btw) to embrace the changes they have made and homage this era.