Classy by both.

Particularly by Kerry. It’s no secret that the 2 didn’t get along very well but Kerry has said at the convention that he thought Sammy helped take some pressure off him in 98 his rookie year taking away a bit of the media glare and pressure or something like that (it was a long time ago forgot his exact words but they were along those lines).

Going to see the Sox tomorrow. Will cheer on Kerry if we see him.

I don’t think people realize what a tough situation Cubs management is in as far as deciding whether or not to do anything special for Sammy.

Sosa SHOULD get a day. His jersey should be retired.

… but I’d love to know the honest truth on Sosa from the mouth of former teammates like Sandburg, Maddux, Girardi and others. Sosa is water under the bridge and Wood and Lee aren’t going to come out and say anything bad about him.

All I remember is the front page photo the next day from the security camera showing him walking away from Wrigley—an obsessed media turning on its star creation.

My memories of Sosa are that he was an absolute threat to turn the game around with one swing (Game 1, 2003 NLCS to name one). Whether he was artificially enhanced is not my concern. I do think he has been found guilty by association with that era by writers who still have their personal axes to grind.

I’d guess the Cubs will acknowledge his greatness in some measure someday. Whether Cooperstown will come calling is another matter. But Sammy was and remains for me the most electric baseball player I have ever seen.

it seems as though time is changing the way many of us view Sosa. I will be particularly interested in his HoF status. He will be the first of the superstars from the era who is widely suspected of PED use, yet really has no proof against him.

It will be an interested test to see how broad of a brush the writers will use on the whole era. If I were a betting man, I would probably lay my money down that Sosa did use, but without evidence, I don’t think I could hold my suspicions against him if I were a voter.

I was not happy with Sammy at the end and I still hold a grudge. Steriod use aside I understand why the Cubs should do something, he sold a lot of tickets to games and put baseball with the Cubs at the forefront with his HR prowess. Should he go in the hall of fame? That will take more time I believe. Should the Cubs honor him? Yes, I have no problem with them having a Sammy day.

He has never, ever been proven to have taken PEDs. Possible, sure, but the only accusations consist of the fact that he got bigger.

The corked bat incident was a transgression, but not one that should cancel out his career.

Wood was saying the right thing and I suspect nothing that he wouldn’t say in private. However, there’s little doubt in my mind that he held back.

Unless it’s proven that Sosa really did take steroids, I don’t see a valid argument for keeping him out of the HoF.

a fan base that loves the Lee Elia tirade (where he rips the Cubs fans) cannot give Sammy his due.

I think the Cubs should honor Sosa with a special day like the one he received in 1998 during his famous home run race with Mark “I’m not here to talk about the past” McGwire.

I don’t think his number should be retired. Instead, the Cubs will present Sammy with his smashed up boom-box, forever “retiring” music in the Cubs clubhouse. They’ll present him with a special commemorative mural featuring special moments of his career – the corked bat incident, getting hit in the helmet in 2003, storming out of the clubhouse in 2004.

Finally, a gift from the Cub organization – in 1998, they presented him with a new Dodge Viper. This time, the Cubs will bestow a Mini Cooper. Then Sammy will address the crowd in his Pigeon English: “Baseball been berry berry good to me!” followed by a lap around Wrigley with added security to fend off the barrage of beer bottles and trash sure to be thrown Sammy’s way.

He’ll throw out the first pitch and miss the cutoff man. He’ll sing the Seventh Inning stretch and make Ozzy Osbourne sound like Pavarotti.

What a day!

I don’t know if he will ever get voted in, but I have zero doubt he will not be a 1st ballot selection, even though his numbers would normally make a 1st ballot selection a slam dunk. I suspect (and hope) the same will happen to Bonds when his time comes.

election to the HOF is not a legal procedure, so evidence is not necessary. Writers can believe that Sammy used PEDs (and only a fool believes he didn’t IMO) without having actual evidence. That is why he does not get in on the first ballot, and maybe never gets in. If he doesn’t get in I won’t lose any sleep over it.