Sammy Sosa

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.