Sammy Sosa gets standing ovation, cheers from Cubs fans in return to Wrigley Field for first time in 21 years
Sammy Sosa returned to Wrigley Field on Friday to be embraced by Cubs fans for the first time in 21 years. (Photo by DANIEL LIPPITT/AFP via Getty Images)
It took 21 years, but Chicago Cubs legend Sammy Sosa finally returned to Wrigley Field. The former MVP and seven-time All-Star received a standing ovation and loud cheers from fans as the team celebrated his career.
Ahead of the third inning, the Cubs played a video on the scoreboard in tribute to Sosa. Once fans realized what was going on, they stood up and clapped for the franchise icon. After the video finished, Sosa was welcomed back by the team.
Fans continued to stand and cheer for Sosa as he mimicked his old home run celebration on the scoreboard.
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The team teased Sosa's appearance ahead of Friday's game, showing footage of Sosa arriving at the park and hugging team chairman Tom Ricketts.
Sosa also met with Cubs star Pete Crow-Armstrong prior to the game and shared some celebratory words with manager Craig Counsell.
During a radio appearance Friday, Crow-Armstrong said he thought it was "important" to have Sosa back Wrigley Field. "I'm glad he's back," Crow-Armstrong added.
Sosa, now 56, starred with the team for 13 seasons in the '90s and early 2000s. After being traded to the Cubs in a cross-town deal with the Chicago White Sox, Sosa emerged as a superstar, and one of the game's premier sluggers.
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From 1993 through 2004, Sosa hit .285/.360/.576 in 7,607 plate appearances. He averaged 45 home runs, 116 RBI and 100 runs scored during that period. Sosa made seven All-Star teams, won six Silver Slugger awards and was named the 1998 National League MVP during his time with the Cubs.
Sosa gained recognition across the entire league in 1998, when he and St. Louis Cardinals slugger Mark McGwire competed to break the single-season home run record. Their rivalry became a massive story both inside and outside the game, and is credited for reigniting fan interest in baseball following the 1994-96 MLB strike. McGwire broke the record that season, smashing 70 home runs. Sosa finished with 66. That record was eventually broken by San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds, who hit 73 home runs in 2001.
But Sosa's departure from the franchise wasn't smooth. Before the final game of the 2004 season, Sosa reportedly told a team trainer he was injured and wasn't going to play in the contest. He allegedly arrived at the ballpark just 70 minutes before game time and left right after first pitch, never putting on his uniform. Sosa was fined by the Cubs for his actions.
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At least one of Sosa's teammates was furious about how things went down. A Cubs player is alleged to have smashed Sosa's boombox with a baseball bat after the game. The identity of that player remains one of the game's biggest mysteries.
The contest marked Sosa's last "appearance" with the Cubs. Sosa was traded to the Baltimore Orioles the following January, ending his tenure in Chicago. His numbers declined with the Orioles before Sosa experienced a brief one-year resurgence with the Texas Rangers in 2007 before retiring.
Sosa's exit from Chicago — combined with his alleged involvement in baseball's steroid era — resulted in a two-decades long feud with the organization. Sosa was alleged to have used steroids during his playing career. He appeared at a 2005 Congressional hearing, where a lawyer read a statement from Sosa denying past steroid use.
When the Cubs reached the World Series in 2016, Sosa was not invited back to take part in any festivities. His No. 21 was never retired by the team. He's never thrown out a first pitch or sang "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" at Wrigley Field.
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In order for Sosa to return, the slugger reportedly had to make amends, a team spokesperson said in 2014. He didn't do that until 2024, when Sosa released an apology letter to the team and its fans. In response, Ricketts invited Sosa to the team's fan fest in 2025. At the event, the team announced Sosa would be inducted into its Hall of Fame.
While Sosa represented the team at its fan convention and served as a guest instructor with the Cubs in spring training, Friday marked the first time he returned to Wrigley Field on positive terms since his unfortunate exit in 2004.
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