Sosa: From trade bait to player of the month

Sosa slams Griffey in the home run hitting derby.

Latinos in the Major Leagues - The Breakdown 2000.

Sammy Sosa -- From trade bait to player of the month.

August 4, 2000 -- What a July, Slamming Sammy had!

The Chicago Cubs right fielder today was named National League Player of the Month for July after batting .337 with 11 home runs and 24 RBI.

Sosa was the subject of trade rumors throughout the month, as the Cubs struggled in the NL Central Division and the superstar outfielder longed for wins.

But Sosa remained with the team and the Cubs started playing their best baseball of the season, going 17-9 in the month, with 16 wins in their last 20 games.

Sosa went 32-for-95 with four doubles, a .726 slugging percentage and a .448 on-base percentage en route to his fourth NL Player of the Month award. He also won in May of last season, June 1998 and July 1996.

Others considered for the award were Atlanta's Javy Lopez; Houston's Jeff Bagwell and Moises Alou; Luis Castillo of Florida; Arizona's Luis Castillo; Cincinnati teammates Chris Stynes, Ken Griffey Jr. and Sean Casey; and Los Angeles' Gary Sheffield.

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