SUSPENSION ENDS Sosa booed in return, homers in Cincinnati

Kerry Wood retired the first 17 Reds batters as the Cubs won, 4-1.
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Sammy Sosa cracked his bat the first time he made contact, and nobody made a fuss. He hit a prodigious homer a few innings later, and got roundly booed.
In his first game back from a suspension for using a corked bat, the Chicago Cubs star found out loud and clear that things will be different from now on.
He singled in his first at-bat Wednesday night and hit the most prodigious homer at Great American Ball Park a few innings later, making an emphatic return from his seven-game suspension, as the Cubs beat the Reds 4-1.
Excellent outing
Cubs star Kerry Wood (6-5) retired the first 17 Reds batters and finished with a three-hitter.
Sosa also got booed and jeered along the way, a dramatic departure for one of baseball's most beloved players.
Appropriately, his comeback started with a crack.
He singled to right field in his first at-bat against Jimmy Haynes, producing a low "thwack" when the ball hit the bat -- a tipoff that it had broken.
Reds fans booed as he ran to first base, and plate umpire Jeff Kellogg picked up the bat and matter-of-factly handed it to the bat boy. A sliver of wood curled from the handle.
The boos drowned out the cheers when he came to bat in the fifth and hit a two-run homer off the top of the massive batter's eye in center field, a drive estimated at 464 feet. Sosa did his home run hop as the ball left the bat, and rounded the bases with his head down as fans booed.
It was his first game since June 10. On June 3, Sosa snapped his bat at Wrigley Field on a grounder to second and was ejected when umpires found cork inside. Sosa explained that he used the corked bat to put on fan-pleasing shows in batting practice, but erroneously used it in a game.
Rest of story
X-rays cleared the rest of his bats, and Sosa's original eight-game suspension was shortened to seven. On the last day of his suspension, he asked fans to forgive and forget his transgression.
Some fans indicated Wednesday that they're not ready to let it go.
Sosa got a round of applause from several hundred fans after he hit long drives in batting practice, and tipped his cap as he left the batting cage. Several fans in Cubs jerseys held up "We Luv U Sammy" signs.
Sosa was lying on his back on a white towel in the outfield, stretching his legs with the assistance of a trainer, when the public address announcer read the Cubs' starting lineup. When he got to Sosa's name, there was a mix of boos and cheers -- a stark contrast to the last time he was in Cincinnati.
The slugger heard mostly cheers whenever he came to bat and got a standing ovation when he hit career homer No. 500 on April 4, a drive to right-center field at Great American Ball Park.
When he came to bat in the first inning Wednesday, the boos began even before he reached the batter's box. After he was announced, the cheers and jeers were about even.
One fan in right field raised a sign that said, "Cork Magnet. Sammy Is So-so." One fan behind home plate screamed "C'mon Corky," and others simply yelled "Cork!"
Security
An extra uniformed police officer stood guard in the outfield as Sosa warmed up in right field for the bottom of the first.
Sosa missed on his first swing before singling off Haynes.
When he came to bat again in the third inning, he grounded out to shortstop Barry Larkin.
Manager Dusty Baker is watching to see how Sosa handles the first real adversity since he and Mark McGwire swung pell-mell at the home run record in 1998, when Sosa finished with 66.