Sammy Sosa no longer looks like he did in the 1990s, when he was part of very important basketball games. His change in appearance has long been discussed.

Sosa, born in the Dominican Republic, has a much whiter complexion than he did during his MLB career. He has said in the past that his skin has a different look now because of a whitening cream he uses - a statement that has received criticism and jokes on social media.

"It's a whitening cream I apply before I go to bed and whiten my skin," he said in a 2009 interview. "What happened is that I used this cream for a long time and that, "Combined with the bright lights of the TV, it makes my face look a lot whiter than it is. I don't think I look like Michael Jackson." 

Sosa, now 52, ??has not spoken often and at length about change. In another 2018 interview, he said he is healthy and added:

"Those people who criticize me, do not know me, do not put food on my table and do not pay my bills," showing that no one owes an explanation.

However, he said that "skin lightening was an unwanted side effect of using the cream".

"I'm not a racist. I live my life happily."

Sosa was one of the most successful athletes of the '99 -'00s. His fall from the "throne" in subsequent years is linked to allegations that he used drugs to increase performance. In recent years he has been largely out of the public eye.

Source: Sporting News