To deny that the interview included strange, and probably inappropriate, remarks would be unreasonable. But, on my initial reading, I certainly didn’t expect that it would have this kind of apparent outcome.
I refer, of course, to the well-circulated interview of former Cubs outfielder Sammy Sosa earlier this week by Chuck Wasserstrom, a former media relations official with the team. If you haven’t read it yet, it’s worth your time.
As I mentioned initially when the interview came out, it was full of some head-shaking responses from the always interesting Sosa, but I was mostly focused on his PED comments and his account of what happened on the final day of the 2004 season (which ultimately led to him being ushered out of town). In any case, whether it was the head-shaking comments (at one point, Sosa compared himself to Jesus Christ … ) or the substantive discussion, the interview was a needle-mover.
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Paul Sullivan reports, according to multiple sources, that Sosa’s comments in the interview “were deemed so bizarre it convinced the organization to close the door on the possibility of ending his 13-year exile.”
Well then.
You can read Sullivan’s report for more context, but the upshot is, according to Sullivan’s sources, you’re not going to hear the Cubs talk about Sammy Sosa much anymore. If it plays out that way for good, it’s an extremely unfortunate ending to an already unfortunate separation, mostly hurting only the fans who have wanted for years to reconnect with their Cubs-Sammy memories in a positive way. Whether the Cubs are being reasonable in their distance, I can’t know as an outsider (though I can say, reading the interview, any number of negative reactions are probably justified). So I don’t really have criticism for the Cubs, or even necessarily Sosa. I have only disappointment that the rift could not be mended at this time.
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