A well-known baseball personality went viral on Thursday for his social media post regarding Sammy Sosa.
Sosa on Thursday issued a statement in which he alluded to his alleged use of performance-enhancing drugs during his playing career. Sosa said he apologized for the implied usage of PEDs.
“There were times I did whatever I could to recover from injuries in an effort to keep my strength up to perform over 162 games,” Sosa said in his statement. “I never broke any laws, but in hindsight, I made mistakes and I apologize.”
Sosa apologized in order to mend his relationship with the Chicago Cubs. Cubs owner Tom Ricketts has long said that Sosa needed to publicly address his PED usage in order to have a reconciliation with the team.
Though Sosa’s apology will allow the parties to move forward, there are plenty of fans out there who don’t think an apology was needed. In fact, baseball internet personality Jared Carrabis went viral for rejecting the apology.
“I don’t accept Sammy Sosa’s apology for taking steroids because I don’t need an apology. Thank you for putting on the show of a lifetime in 1998 and saving baseball,” Carrabis wrote on X.
I don’t accept Sammy Sosa’s apology for taking steroids because I don’t need an apology. Thank you for putting on the show of a lifetime in 1998 and saving baseball.
— Jared Carrabis (@Jared_Carrabis) December 19, 2024
Carrabis isn’t alone in that feeling.
Sosa and Mark McGwire helped save baseball with their home run chase in 1998. Sosa slugged 66 home runs that season and McGwire smacked 70 as the two battled back-and-forth all summer to surpass Roger Maris’ previous record of 61. That entire season was magical, and the pursuit of the record made MLB must-see TV — all just years after the players’ strike in 1994 ruined the season and made fans livid. People have come to accept that the PED usage was just part of the story at the time, and they don’t like that Sosa was made to apologize for it 26 years later.
