'He created part of the change': Chicago Cubs relish in Sammy Sosa's return to Wrigley Field
Sammy Sosa speaks to reporters at the 2025 Cubs Convention
Slammin' Sammy is finally back. Sammy Sosa was welcomed back to the Cubs franchise and spoke to reporters about his return.
The winds were a-changing in Wrigleyville. No one knows what that means more than Sammy Sosa.
"He saw the wind blowing out today," Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Friday morning. "He asked to be in the lineup."
Slammin' Sammy is back at Wrigley Field.
The backstory:
Chicago Cubs icon Sammy Sosa, once estranged from the franchise he starred for in the 2000s, has returned to the Friendly Confines in a sign the relationship has taken another step in the right direction.
Sosa returned to the Cubs' family during Cubs Convention in January, and there were signs the team was welcoming him back in March 2024. Now, Sammy got a chance to see Wrigley Field as a member of the Cubs community for the first time since 2004.
"It's fun that he's back," Counsell said. "For our fans, they spent a lot of time enjoying Sammy's great performances on the field."
Sosa also visited with the Cubs during Spring Training in March. Players got to see the person he was then.
On Friday, Cubs players understood they were going to see what it looks like when a player graduates from being a great player to an all-time great, and from an all-time great to a team legend.
"The fan base really appreciates guys that poured their heart and soul into this place and gave everything they had," Cubs outfielder Ian Happ said. "That's what makes being a Cub really special, is how much people care, how much people root for the players."
Big picture view:
Wrigley Field, and especially Wrigleyville, looks very different from when Sosa left in 2004.
There are hotels, restaurants and new things to do as the neighborhood evolved around the Friendly Confines into something that shows how the Cubs are the centerpiece of the area.
Counsell knows Sosa was a catalyst of this with every ball he mashed beyond the ivy walls and with every game he helped the Cubs win.
"He created part of the change," Counsell said. "It's one of those things as a player, you'd have no idea that you're part of that. You're just going out and playing baseball."
On Friday, Sosa will finally get his moment. He'll officially be back at Wrigley Field and in the Cubs community.
"To see the reception when guys come back, it just shows you it's one of the many things that makes this place special," Happ said.