When Sammy Sosa tried to squash allegations of skin lightening by blaming it on his bleaching cream

Seven-time All-Star Sammy Sosa always made headlines and once in 2009, he got into a controversy regarding his skin color, a few years after his retirement. Sosa attempted to dodge rumors of skin lightening by blaming it on a cream.

"It's a bleaching cream that I apply before going to bed and whitens my skin some," said the former slugger during the "Primer Impacto" program. "It's a cream that I have, that I use to soften [my skin], but has bleached me some. I'm not a racist, I live my life happily."

The controversy spread because of Sosa's picture, which was taken during the Grammy Latino Awards in 2009.

"Sammy Sosa on skin bleaching: 'I do whatever I want.'" - https://trib.al/InDGkGP - Complex

Some people questioned if Sosa had undergone surgery to brighten and relax his facial expressions, while others believed it was due to his reported use of steroids.

Here's the full story.

Sammy Sosa squashes rumors that he hated his dark skin

After getting tired of the rumors, Sosa said the following to Sports Illustrated:

“Look at what I am today. This is my life, and I don’t take garbage from nobody. I do whatever I want."

Sosa spent 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), mostly with the Chicago Cubs. He was one of the game's top hitters. Sosa is one of nine MLB players with a 600-home run career. Sosa became the fifth player in MLB history to hit 600 home runs while playing for the Texas Rangers.

According to an article published in 2009, Sosa was listed among the players who tested positive for performance-enhancing substances in 2003 as part of the baseball steroid scandal.

Houston Astros v Baltimore Orioles

In 2005, Sosa denied using drugs.