Sammy Sosa was born Samuel Sosa Peralta in San Pedro de Marcoris, Dominican Republic, on November 12, 1968. His father, Juan, a farmer, died when Sosa was only 7 years old, leaving his mother, Lucrecia, to raise him, his four brothers, and two sisters. To help support his family, Sosa shined shoes, sold oranges by the roadside, and later worked as a janitor in a local shoe factory. As a boy, he played a primitive form of baseball in the streets near his home, but it was not until he was 14 years old that he joined what he later described as "a real team." He quickly showed an aptitude for the game. Only a year later, at age 15, Sosa signed a contract with the Philadelphia Phillies; the contract, however, was later declared void because of Sosa's age.
When Sosa was 16, Omar Minaya, a scout for the Texas Rangers, invited the young Dominican to a tryout in the northern city of Puerto Plata, five hours by bus from his home. Malnourished and frail, Sosa nevertheless showed promise. Recalling his first impressions of Sosa, Minaya later said, "I saw athletic talent, and I saw courage. I saw a guy who was not afraid to air it out and to play. I saw bat speed. I saw a good arm." Convinced that Sosa was a worthwhile prospect, Minaya offered him a contract for a signing bonus of $3,000. Sosa asked for $4,000, and they eventually settled on a bonus of $3,500. Sosa took out only enough to buy himself a bike and turned the rest of the money over to his mother.
Citing this material
Please include a link to this page if you have found this material useful for research or writing a related article. Content on this website is from high-quality, licensed material originally published in print form. You can always be sure you're reading unbiased, factual, and accurate information.
Highlight the text below, right-click, and select “copy”. Paste the link into your website, email, or any other HTML document.
User Comments Add a comment…
10 months ago
hey slammen sammy i am doing a book report at school and i chose to do u because i love the game of baseball and your 1 of my favorite players.I also like brian roberts.I think u are a very great player.so I just wanted to say hi and good luck this season. P.S:sorry about your dad and im glad u stayed strong and made through it. that must have been hard cause i no i love my dad so much and i couldn't amagen loseing him. from your fan, kellie
about 1 year ago
Hey sammy i really admire you because you never thought about only youself and that what i like about you.I was also born in the dominican republic and raised their by my grandmother because my mom came to alaska when i was young.But she came back when i was 4 years old and brought me to alaska.all i got to say is to keep on doing what you do best your fan yanilka pena