Sammy Sosa and the Hall of Fame
Does Sosa belong with Aaron, Mays, Bonds and other greats?
Jun 26, 2007
Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds, Willie Mays . . . Sammy Sosa?
Which name doesn’t fit?
Are you really willing to lump Sosa in with the greats of the game?
Most people aren’t. Sosa just reached the 600 home run mark, and baseball fans across the world are putting Sosa in context. Is he a Hall of Famer? Does he deserve to be anointed in Cooperstown with the rest of the games legends?
This article could be all questions and no conclusions. That’s how ambiguous this topic has become. Has Sosa used steroids? If he did use steroids, did he do it during his home run boom, from 1998-2002? If he did use steroids, does that make him unworthy of a Hall of Fame vote?
We don’t know anything about Sosa’s steroid usage, but we do know about his numbers throughout his career. When Sosa started up, he was regarded as a stat-padding, selfish player who didn’t care about the fate of his team. He was known to steal bases when games were already out of reach to put another SB on the score sheet.
Sosa began his major league career with the Texas Rangers after they called him up from the minor leagues in 1989. He played 25 games for the Rangers, hitting a little less than .250, before they moved Sosa to the Chicago White Sox, where he played 33 games and registered 27 hits in 99 at-bats.
Sosa played two more seasons for the White Sox, batting .233 in the first and .203 in the second, before he went north to the Cubs in 1992. Sosa hit eight homers in his first year with the Cubs in 67 at-bats. Sosa started nearly every game for the Cubs in 1993 and responded with 33 home runs and 93 RBIs. He hit 25 HR’s in 1994, 36 in 1995, 40 in 1996, and 36 in 1997.
Sosa was a 40-40 threat every season and was a consistent but not overpowering home run threat. Then the chaos began. In 1998, Sosa exploded for 66 home runs and played second fiddle to Mark McGwire’s 70.
Sosa had another 60 home run season in 1999, smacking 63, and hit 50 in 2000 before his final 60-homer season in 2002 when he jacked 64.
In the past, Sosa would’ve been a first ballot Hall of Famer without a hitch. Hitting 500 used to be the gold standard, but with the emerging allegations of steroid-usage and Sosa’s unconvincing showing in front of Congress in the federal investigation, fans and writers have their doubts.
But let’s look at Sosa’s numbers in the big picture. He is 70th in runs scored with 1,452, behind Gary Sheffield, Kenny Lofton and way behind Ken Griffey Jr. Sosa is 110th in hits with 2,365, behind Luis Gonzalez, Omar Vizquel, Steve Finley and Julio Franco.
Sosa is 30th in total bases with 4,626 and 24th in RBIs with 1,634. Obviously, Sosa’s credentials in the home run department need no introduction, but he did hit 350 of them at Wrigley Field, which is home run-friendly, to say the least.
Sosa has struck out more than anybody in major league history except Reggie Jackson, and joins Jim Thome, Andres Galarraga and Jose Canseco at the top.
The Texas Ranger has more 60 home run seasons than anyone who’s ever played the game (3), but his home runs might be the only thing that he has in his corner. He doesn’t hit for average, he’s not a tremendous fielder, and he lost a lot of speed early in his career.
So with all of the ‘ifs’ out of the equation, do you put Sammy Sosa in the Hall of Fame?
