Latest news with #CubsConvention
New York Post
18 hours ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Sammy Sosa looks his old self in two-decade return to Wrigley Field after Cubs feud
At long last, Sammy Sosa is back at Wrigley Field. The slugger and Cubs legend returned to Wrigley for the first time in 21 years on Friday — and he's back to looking the way he did during his playing days. Sosa's skin was visibly darker again, after it had become increasingly lighter in the years following the end of his MLB career in 2007. Advertisement In 2009, Sosa told Univision that the lightening of his complexion was due to a cosmetic facial cream he used to soften his skin. Cubs fans welcomed the former MVP back to Wrigley with open arms, giving Sosa a standing ovation after the team played a tribute video on the scoreboard before the third inning of Friday's game between Chicago and the Mariners. Advertisement As a camera panned to Sosa in the stands, the seven-time All-Star did his iconic home run celebration as the crowd roared. Sosa played 13 seasons with the Cubs, hitting 545 home runs over that stretch. 4 Cubs legend Sammy Sosa returned to Wrigley Field for the first time in 21 years on Friday. Matt Marton-Imagn Images He's most famous for blasting a ridiculous 66 homers in 1998, falling just short of Mark McGwire's 70 bombs that were then a single-season record. Advertisement But Sosa had a tension-filled exit from Chicago, which led to his two-decade absence from Wrigley Field and the Cubs organization. In the final game of the 2004 season, his last in Chicago, Sosa arrived just 70 minutes before first pitch and left shortly after the game began, getting fined by the Cubs as a result. One Cubs player, whose identity still remains unknown, smashed Sosa's boom box in the clubhouse after that game, enraged by the slugger's actions. 4 Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa hits a home run against the Marlins in June 1998. ASSOCIATED PRESS Advertisement Tensions between the Cubs and Sosa also stemmed from Sosa's alleged use of steroids throughout his career. The Cubs never retired Sosa's No. 21 nor invited him back for any team festivities, with a team spokesperson telling ESPN in 2014 that Sosa needed to 'make amends' with the organization. Sosa did that by releasing a statement in 2024 apologizing for 'mistakes,' and he was accordingly welcomed back into the organization's good graces. 4 Former Chicago Cubs star Sammy Sosa addresses the media in the fourth inning during a game against the Seattle Mariners at Wrigley Field on June 20, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. Getty Images 4 Chicago Cubs former player Sammy Sosa greets fans during the game against the Seattle Mariners at Wrigley Field. Matt Marton-Imagn Images He was invited to the Cubs Convention fan event over the winter and is set to be inducted into the Cubs Hall of Fame this summer. And now, he's made his long-awaited return to Wrigleyville.
Chicago Tribune
20 hours ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Afternoon Briefing: Iconic windmill along I-80 comes down
Good afternoon, Chicago. Illinois lawmakers grappling with uncertainty over Trump administration spending cuts tucked a handful of tools aimed at maintaining key programs into the budget package signed by Gov. JB Pritzker earlier this week, including a flexible fund of $100 million the governor can use to cover gaps left by unrealized federal funding. 'The magnitude and volume of problems that Trump and his administration are creating is something that no state has ever dealt with before. So it will have limited use,' Andy Manar, deputy governor on budget issues, said of the $100 million fund. 'But it will serve a very strategic role.' Here's what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices. Subscribe to more newsletters | Asking Eric | Horoscopes | Puzzles & Games | Today in History The motel had long been a south suburban sore spot, a no-tell motel with stays available in four-hour increments that often ended badly. Read more here. More top news stories: Blue Island's former MetroSouth hospital served as a warning of what could happen if President Donald Trump's big bill aimed at slashing federal spending and extending tax cuts becomes law, elected officials and health care workers said. Read more here. More top business stories: The former Chicago Cubs outfielder will return to Wrigley Field today for the first time since his controversial exit in 2004, after reuniting with the organization in January at the Cubs Convention. Read more here. More top sports stories: Mezzo-soprano Marianne Crebassa and tenor John Osborn were both cast for the originally planned 'Faust,' but you'd think they were hand-picked specifically for this repertoire. Read more here. More top Eat. Watch. Do. stories: President Donald Trump has been weighing whether to attack Iran by striking its well-defended Fordo uranium enrichment facility, which is buried under a mountain and widely considered to be out of reach of all but America's 'bunker-buster' bombs. . Read more here. More top stories from around the world:
USA Today
20 hours ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Why Sammy Sosa is finally returning to Wrigley Field after 21-year absence
Sammy Sosa is one of the greatest Chicago Cubs of all time, earning seven All-Star appearances during his 13-year career with the team and landing a spot in the team's Hall of Fame. But since his departure from the team in 2004 and particularly his retirement from baseball in 2007, that relationship was outright severed. That changed in the last year, and now, Sosa is set to make his return to Wrigley Field for the first time since his last game with the Cubs. Sosa's appearance on Friday was initially meant to be a surprise with a grandiose mid-game reveal, but USA TODAY Sports MLB columnist Bob Nightengale posted the scoop on social media Friday morning. Sosa's strained relationship with the Cubs began with his departure from the team in 2004. Before he was traded to the Baltimore Orioles, Sosa opted not to play in his final game in Chicago. He left Wrigley Field in the first inning, and though he later argued he stayed later into the game, the Cubs ultimately released surveillance footage showing Sosa leaving the parking lot. Between his ugly exit and, later, when it was revealed that he had reportedly failed a test for performance-enhancing drugs, his relationship with the Cubs ended. Owner Tom Ricketts, who bought the team in 2009 after Sosa's retirement, stated that Sosa wouldn't be welcomed back until he apologized for doping. That apology (sort of) came last December, when Sosa took accountability for his "mistakes." Though he did not explicitly admit to using PEDs, that was good enough for Ricketts, who invited Sosa to the annual Cubs Convention event. Now, the two will take an even bigger step in repairing their relationship with Sosa returning to the stands at Wrigley for Friday's game against the Seattle Mariners. Sosa will also be inducted as a member of the Cubs Hall of Fame later this year.
Chicago Tribune
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Sammy Sosa will return to Wrigley Field for 1st time since his controversial Chicago Cubs exit in 2004
Sammy Sosa is back. Again. The former Chicago Cubs outfielder will return to Wrigley Field Friday for the first time since his controversial exit in 2004, after reuniting with the organization in January at the Cubs Convention. Sosa's return was supposed to be a surprise reveal after a video highlight package was played in the 'Legends of the Game' segment. Sosa would then be shown live in a Cubs suite, as other former players have done when they've appeared in the video feature. But the surprise was spoiled when the news of Sosa's return was tweeted Friday morning. It quickly spread on the internet and on talk radio. The last time Sosa was at Wrigley was on the final day of the 2004 season when he left the game in the first inning after informing manager Dusty Baker through an intermediary he was not playing. When that news spread, Sosa and his agent told the Chicago Sun-Times he didn't leave until later in the game. The Cubs responded by saying they had videotape of Sosa leaving the parking lot. That began the final chapter of Sosa's Cubs career. He was traded to the Baltimore Orioles and was separated from the organization after his retirement. Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts wanted an apology from Sosa for allegedly using performance-enhancing drugs, which Sosa always denied. After a decade of back-and-forth, the two sides finally reconciled over the winter with Sosa issuing a semi-apology for making unspecified mistakes. He later told reporters at January's Cubs Convention he was apologizing for not being there for fans the last 20 years, not for taking PEDs. Either way, Sosa was back, and the former Cubs slugger whose race with Mark McGwire for the home run record in 1998 made him a national figure began a new chapter as part of the Cubs family. He spent a few days in spring training in Mesa, Ariz., as a guest instructor and will be inducted into the Cubs Hall of Fame later this year. Sosa is expected to meet with the media Friday.
Chicago Tribune
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Column: Has the Wrigley Field video board enhanced the ballpark experience for Chicago Cubs fans?
Scoreboard watching at Wrigley Field in late May is not at all practical with two-thirds of the season remaining, despite growing optimism in the Chicago Cubs. But now more than ever, Cubs fans seem to be video board watching, giving their undivided attention to the left field video board erected 10 years ago during the Project 1060 renovation. The video-free era ended at a perfect time for the Cubs' rebuild, which began to turn the corner in May 2015 thanks to the arrivals of free agent starter Jon Lester, the promotion of rookie Kris Bryant, the emergence of Jake Arrieta and the 'Try Not to Suck' mantra of new manager Joe Maddon. Now the video board has become an integral part of Wrigley, like the bleachers, the ivy and its older, technologically averse relative, the 88-year-old center field scoreboard built by Bill Veeck. It's hard for some to remember what Wrigley Field was like before the major cultural change of 10 years ago. Looking up between innings is now a force of habit. The Wendella boat race ad, a virtual copy of the Donut Race at the United Center, drew a huge roar from the crowd of 40,171 on hand for the Memorial Day game against the Colorado Rockies. Many fans stopped and watched Pete Crow-Armstrong's 'diamond moment' ad in which the Cubs center fielder reminisced about his first game at Wrigley as a 13-year-old, when he looked in admiration at the old scoreboard. A sighting of actor Jason Bateman in the stands drew applause, and even the hokey Cubs' cap dance, where fans guess which rotating cap the ball is under, got a nice response. Has the video board enhanced the Wrigley Field experience? Were the traditionalists wrong all along? Remember, the Cubs rejected the idea of adding a video board for decades as a nod to the ballpark's storied history. As every season went by and new stadiums emerged, Wrigley's aura became more pronounced, even as the occupants never won. The first serious conversations about change came in 2008 after real estate mogul Sam Zell took over the team, which was part of Tribune Co., and looked into the possibility of adding video. 'We are not going to touch the existing scoreboard,' Cubs business operations president Crane Kenney declared at the time. 'Somewhere else in the ballpark? That's an idea people talk about, but it would have to fit … People are jumping off bridges over worries about Wrigley Field. I'd like to think we'd get a little bit of credit, and I know Sam is a new owner, but give him a little bit of credit. We haven't done anything not in keeping with the character of the park.' But Zell was a short-timer who didn't even like baseball. The Ricketts family agreed to buy the Cubs in 2009, and the idea resurfaced at the 2010 Cubs Convention, where fans were asked at a seminar if they wanted a video board. About half raised their hands. It was still controversial at the time, but an informal Tribune poll of Cubs players that spring in Mesa, Ariz., found that the vast majority were in favor of a video board. The most passionate objector was infielder Ryan Theriot, who feared it would ruin the ambience of the ballpark. 'If you're going to do that, you might as well change the whole park and modernize everything,' Theriot said. 'The way it is now is the way it's been for years, and the way it's meant to be, so you might as well leave it the way it is. I know things change and times change, but from a historical standpoint, that Wrigley vibe, that feel … a Jumbotron would change everything.' The Cubs would eventually do just that and modernize Wrigley, including adding the video board. They've had many critical successes like Gallagher Way, and added patio sections for mingling, bigger bathrooms and improved lighting. The many exclusive clubs built at Wrigley have been a financial success, though most casual fans can't get into one. The neighborhood has also changed immensely, with expensive dining options and dive bars co-existing within walking distance. But the video board is the one renovation everyone in the ballpark experiences. Whether it has 'changed everything,' as Theriot feared, is in the eyes and ears of the beholder. In essence, it's not all that different from other video boards around the sports world with its interactive ads and infomercials touting the team and its history, along with the replays, highlights and stats. Fans can now see the replays of video challenges instead of looking at their phones, as they did in the early 2010s. One of the more popular staples has been the 'Legends of the Game' video, with the orchestra music swelling over highlights of a former Cubs star, who sometimes is at the game and receives a standing ovation afterward. It'd be nice to see a few different legends other than the ones in the current rotation, but that's a minor quibble. The main reason the Cubs wanted a video board, of course, was to make money. They promised it would be tasteful with no airing of TV commercials. Former senior marketing director Alison Miller said in 2015: 'You're never going to see a 30-second auto commercial. That's us not doing our job if we just resort to showing commercials.' Instead, the video board features advertising vignettes between innings with players like Crow-Armstrong trying to locate Cincinnati on a map for an airline sponsor, or 'Guess which pitch Colin Rea is throwing?' for a paint manufacturer, or 'Pick the Song of the Game' for a Japanese candy company. The Cubs, fortunately, have not resorted to using emcees or DJs on the video boards and have not featured an animal like the Los Angeles Angels' 'Rally Monkey' screaming at fans. More importantly, they have eschewed two particularly annoying video board tropes aimed at getting fans' attention — kissing fans and 'make some noise' graphics. 'We believe there is a way to entertain fans and keep them engaged without going the way of Kiss Cam or noise meter,' a spokesperson said in 2014. The spokesperson said Chairman Tom Ricketts personally banned the so-called 'Kiss Cam' and graphics exhorting fans when to cheer or get louder. Ricketts has kept that vow. It's a little more high-brow video board presentation than what you might experience in some ballparks, much like the Fenway Park video board in Boston. Red Sox fans consider themselves above such diversions, and ditto Cubs fans. Fears that the Wrigley video board would overwhelm the senses and make the center field scoreboard seem obsolete have mostly been allayed over the last decade. It's not perfect, but it does its job without stealing attention from the game. The Cubs even repainted the old scoreboard over the winter and it looks as good as new. And many fans still pose with the old scoreboard in the background of their Instagram photos because it represents old Wrigley, even as they prefer having a real video board to watch. There's room for both the old and the new at Wrigley, as long as it's done right.
