Chicago Cubs 2005 Preview

OVERVIEW

Wrigley Field will have a different feel to it this season, as Slammin' Sammy Sosa, the face of the Chicago Cubs' franchise for 13 years, won't be there to do his daily sprint out to right field.

While it was sad for the franchise and its fans to see Sosa go, it doesn't necessarily mean that jettisoning him to Baltimore was a bad thing. In fact, it was simply the best thing that Cubs general manager Jim Hendry could have done.

Sosa had bowed out early on his team in the 2004 season finale and complained about being moved down in the lineup by Dusty Baker, forcing the club's hand. It didn't help that his skills seemed to be quickly diminishing last season, as his batting average fell 20 points to .253 in the final two months of the campaign. Sosa also played in just 126 games due to injury, his lowest total since 1992 when he was still with the Chicago White Sox.

Despite making many enemies in the clubhouse and struggling with his consistency, Sosa still belted 35 homers and knocked in 80 runs. Chicago will need offseason signee Jeromy Burnitz to ease the pain of losing Sosa's powerful bat with a solid season in right field. More...

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posted by ADMIN @ Thursday, March 24, 2005