Sosa continued his success with the Cubs in 1996 as he batted. 273 with 40 home runs and 100 RBIs.

In subsequent years, Sosa continued to tour both in Argentina and abroad, performing in such venues as the Lincoln Center in New York and the Théâtre Mogador in Paris.

Sosa continued to pitch well in his games following his debut.

His late 2007 struggles as a reliever continued, as Sosa allowed 17 earned runs in 21. 2 innings pitched.

On August 15, Thome hit 599th and 600th homerun at Comerica Park to become the eighth player in Major League history to hit 600 homeruns, joining Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, Ken Griffey Jr., and Alex Rodriguez.

With the Rangers, Sosa hit his 600th career home run to become the fifth player in MLB history to reach the milestone.

Sosa is the only player to have hit 60 or more home runs in a single season three times.

Sosa made his major league debut on June 16, 1989, with the Texas Rangers, and he hit first career home run off Roger Clemens.

In the season, Sosa hit 63 home runs, again trailing Mark McGwire who hit 65.

Sosa finished the season with 40 home runs, and he hit two more in the 2003 NLCS against the Florida Marlins, but overall, the Cubs lost the series in seven games.

During a stretch of nine consecutive years, Sosa hit 35 + home runs and 100 + RBIs, all with the Chicago Cubs.

At the same time, the Chicago Cubs awarded Sosa's # 21 to new pitcher Jason Marquis, despite the fact that it was formerly worn by Sosa, who coincidentally later hit his 600th home run against Marquis.

On June 20, 2007, Sosa hit a home run off of Jason Marquis during an inter-league game against the Chicago Cubs.

Sosa became only the fifth man in history, following Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, and Barry Bonds, to hit 600 regular season home runs.

The home run was the first one that Sosa had recorded against the Cubs, and as a result he has hit a home run against every active MLB team.

Sosa is the Cubs'all-time home run leader, having hit 545 with that team.

In 1998, Henderson and Valenzuela were gone, but newly acquired ( from the 1997 World Series champion Florida Marlins ) pitcher Kevin Brown had a sensational year ( his only one with the Padres ) and outfielder / slugger Greg Vaughn bounced back after a poor 1997 season and hit 50 home runs ( overlooked in that season of the Mark McGwire-Sammy Sosa race ).

On June 20, Sammy Sosa hit his 600th career home run against the Chicago Cubs at the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.

The following day he got his first hit in the 13th inning of a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers off relief pitcher Elías Sosa.

Five players — Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds, Willie Mays, Alex Rodriguez and Sammy Sosa — are also members of the 500 home run club, and Aaron and Mays are also members of the 3, 000 hit club.

* April 4 – Sammy Sosa hits his 500th career home run off Cincinnati Reds pitcher Scott Sullivan in the seventh inning at Great American Ball Park, becoming only the 18th player in Major League Baseball history to hit 500 or more home runs, as well as the first Hispanic to do so.

Sammy Sosa hit his 62nd home run just days later on September 13.

He had three seasons with at least 100 runs batted in, and four with 30 or more home runs-including the legendary season, when he hit 50 to finish 4th in the major leagues behind Ken Griffey, Jr., Sammy Sosa, and Mark McGwire, who set the home run record that season.

Horner's record stood until 1998 when Sammy Sosa hit a grand slam, the 248th home run of his career, to surpass Horner's mark.

" From left to right: bat used by Babe Ruth to hit his 60th home run during the 1927 season, bat used by Roger Maris to hit his 61st home run during the 1961 season, bat used by Mark McGwire to hit his 70th home run during the 1998 season, and the bat used by Sammy Sosa for his 66th home run during the same season.

After the retirement of Sandberg and the trade of Dunston, the Cubs had holes to fill and the signing of Henry Rodriguez, known affectionately at " H-Rod " to bat cleanup provided protection for Sammy Sosa in the lineup, as Rodriguez slugged 31 round-trippers in his first season in Chicago.

He matched what was then the single-season home run record by a right-handed batter, ( Jimmy Foxx, 1932 ); the mark would stand for 66 years until it was broken by Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire.

Sosa was then a rookie for the Texas Rangers.

In 2003, he was part of an advertising campaign for Armour hot dogs with MLB players Ken Griffey, Jr., Derek Jeter, and Sammy Sosa.

In 1998, Sosa and Mark McGwire achieved national fame for their home run-hitting prowess in pursuit of Roger Maris ' home run record.

It was in this season that both Sosa and Mark McGwire were involved in the " home run record chase ", when both players ' prowess for hitting home runs drew national attention as they attempted to pass Roger Maris ' single season home run mark of 61 home runs that had stood since.

Sosa won the National League Most Valuable Player Award for leading the Cubs into the playoffs in 1998, earning every first-place vote except for the two cast by St. Louis writers, who voted for McGwire.

In recognition of his accomplishments as a hitter, Sosa won the Silver Slugger award ( an award for offensive output, voted on by managers and coaches ) in and in 1998 through 2002.

The year was not all good news for Sosa, however.

On June 6, Sosa was suspended for eight games.

According to the New York Times of June 16, 2009, Sosa had also tested positive for steroids at some point during the season.

On January 28, 2005, the Cubs traded Sosa to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for infielder / outfielder Jerry Hairston, Jr., infielder Mike Fontenot, and RHP Dave Crouthers.

Under the deal, Sosa earned $ 17, 875, 000 for the 2005 season, with the Cubs paying $ 7 million of his salary.

By playing for the 2005 Orioles alongside fellow 500-home-run batter Rafael Palmeiro, Sosa and Palmeiro became the first 500 home run club members in history to play together on the same team after reaching the 500 home run plateau.

Sosa did not make the original edition, but for the 2005 update, with his career totals considerably higher, he was ranked at Number 95.

The contract included an invitation to spring training, where Sosa competed for a spot in the lineup with Nelson Cruz, Jason Botts, and other rookies / prospects.

On May 28,, Sosa announced that he instructed his agent not to offer his services to any Major League team for the 2008 season, and planned on filing for retirement, but never did.

On December 25, 2008, Sosa announced he intended to unretire and play in the World Baseball Classic and once again test the free agent market in hopes of signing for a Major League ballclub in 2009.

On June 16, 2009 the New York Times reported Sosa was on a list of players who tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in 2003.

In a recent interview with ESPN Deportes, Sosa said he would " calmly wait " for his induction into baseball's Hall of Fame, for which he will become eligible in 2013.