SI: Cubs, Sosa Discussed Reconciliation in 2014

Sosa holds the record for most home runs in Cubs history

Former Chicago Cubs outfielder Sammy Sosa has not been welcomed back to Wrigley Field since his controversial divorce from the team in 2004, and now we have more insight into the relationship between the club and its former iconic star.

In a lengthy profile published by Sports Illustrated, a person close to the Cubs says that the team actually met with Sosa in 2014 to potentially engineer a reunion:

“According to a source close to the club, representatives of the Cubs met with Sosa in 2014, at the behest of Dominican government officials, to discuss a possible homecoming. According to the source, Sosa agreed that he would issue an apology – that is, something to acknowledge malfeasance, but short of a total confession. The next day, Sosa backed out.”

Sosa confirmed the account to the publication, but Cubs owner Tom Ricketts was not interviewed for the story.

Sosa and the team have been at odds since the 2004 season, when Sosa left the team’s final game while it was still going on. After the game, one of his teammates memorably smashed his famous boombox to pieces, and Sosa was ultimately traded to Baltimore before the 2005 campaign.

In the years since, Sosa has faced accusations of steroid use during his big league career, and the Ricketts family has said that he needs to apologize before they will consider welcoming him back to Wrigley Field.

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