Fergie, Maddux To Have #31 Retired By Cubs

[PcB]

<!--quoteo(post=35391:date=May 4 2009, 03:17 PM:name=Butcher)-->QUOTE (Butcher @ May 4 2009, 03:17 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=35389:date=May 4 2009, 03:11 PM:name=PcB)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (PcB @ May 4 2009, 03:11 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=35386:date=May 4 2009, 02:56 PM:name=Runnys)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Runnys @ May 4 2009, 02:56 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=35326:date=May 4 2009, 12:30 PM:name=PcB)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (PcB @ May 4 2009, 12:30 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=35324:date=May 4 2009, 12:23 PM:name=Runnys)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Runnys @ May 4 2009, 12:23 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=35304:date=May 4 2009, 10:54 AM:name=ruby23)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (ruby23 @ May 4 2009, 10:54 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=35287:date=May 4 2009, 09:56 AM:name=Kid)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Kid @ May 4 2009, 09:56 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->Too bad he cheated.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
So did everyone else, he was just better at it. Retire his number and send him to the HOF.
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This is where I am at. If he took steroids, he didn't get caught doing it. As for the corked bat thing, that was one instance, but how many other bats did he break before and after that that did not have any cork? Also, IIRC, that was the ONLY bat of his that had cork in it.

I am not saying that Sosa is innocent because I believe he did something, however, he hasn't been named like A-Rod, Bonds, Palmeiro, Tejada etc. He has 600 + HR's, he should be in 1st ballot.
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His numbers don't matter. Bonds won't get in 1st ballot. The reason he's not getting in is because of the people voting to keep him out. A huge % of the voters are not going to vote for someone involved with steroids, as you can see with Big Mac last year. He would be a first ballot guy, but why did he only get like 5% of the vote? It's just not gonna happen for ANY of these guys for a long time, until these voters get replaced by younger voters who understand the era.
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My thing though is that what is the reason that his numbers don't matter? He has not been linked to steroids at all except through speculation. Bonds has been indicted for perjury. Giambi, A-Rod, and Tejada have all admitted to taking it or lying about it. Sosa has always held that he was clean and his name has not come up in any official documentation as far as i can remember. His numbers should matter more than anyone else's IMO.

As for the voters not voting for someone involved in steroids, that is fine. But what proof do they have that Sammy was?
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I think their proof is that they they weren't born yesterday and they're not retarded. There is no way any person in the world can think that Sammy Sosa is 100% clean. It's impossible. Why did he suddenly forget how to speak English in front of Congress if he had nothing to hide?
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None of that qualifies as "proof." However, I'd argue with your claim that the voters aren't retarded -- many of the voters are quite retarded.
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That works even better. They're retarded and they still know Sosa isn't innocent.

Also, I would hazard a guess that if you talked to 100 people who watch baseball and aren't from Chicago what the first word they think of when they heard the name Sammy Sosa is that they would say steroids.