Pittsburgh Pirates Sign Family Member of MLB Legend From the International Ranks
The Pittsburgh Pirates have made a splashy signing from the International ranks, inking a deal with the 16-year-old nephew of Sammy Sosa.
Per Hector Gomez on social media:
The Pittsburgh Pirates sign OF/SS 16-year-old Anthony Sosa for a $100,000 signing bonus. Anthony is Sammy Sosa's nephew.
You never know how these things are going to work out and we're certainly years away from Sosa being a possibility at the big-league level, but any time you sign a player that comes from the lineage of a former star, there's some excitement there.
While Sammy Sosa's reputation was tarnished through his connection to the Steroid Era, he was one of the most popular and accomplished players of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
He spent 18 years in the big leagues with the Rangers, White Sox, Cubs, Orioles and Rangers again, hitting 609 career home runs. He led the league in home runs in two separate seasons (2000 and 2002) and was part of the magical home run chase of the 1998 season with Mark McGwire.
You certainly don't want to put pressure on Anthony to rival his uncle's skillset, but the Pirates are certainly hoping that there's a similar skillset in there.
The Pirates lost to the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday night 7-6 to fall to 74-84 on the season. One of the best stories in baseball through the first two months of the year, the Pirates regressed in June, but there are foundational pieces to be excited about.
Perhaps Sosa can be one in the future as well.
They'll take on the Phillies again on Thursday night.
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