Time to Forgive Sammy Sosa?

Oh how we forget. For twelve years Sammy Sosa reigned over Chicago Cubs baseball, considered by some to be the rival to Ernie Banks in the discussions of the greatest baseball players to ever call Wrigley Field home. He crushed home runs, stole bases, batted in runs and served as one of the key drawing points for some otherwise depressing Cubs teams. Sammy was the star, Sammy was the draw, Sammy was the man on the North Side. People came to games and would leave happy even if the Cubs lost, just so long as they got to see Sammy go yard. And then there was a fall from grace. It started with a sneeze that took him out of action for a while. A corked bat, a fastball to the head, a failed playoff run, and an early exit on the final game of the season added to an exit from Chicago, as the fans had turned on Sammy and his declining production. He was jeered in Baltimore, slumped and was soon left for dead. Cubs fans cheered his decline and steroid accusations came flying from parts of the North Side that had previously ignored such accusations. Sammy's fan base disappeared along with his production at the plate, and after a year away from the game it seemed as though we had seen the last of the slugger. But this year Sammy decided to make a comeback, and the Rangers decided to give him a chance and so have I.