A black baseball star has shocked fans by posting a picture of himself with what looks like white skin.
Baseball legend, Sammy Sosa, caused a social media meltdown after photos of the former Chicago Cubs right fielder, dabbing in London, went viral.
Fans have noted his not-so subtle transformation since retiring from the big leagues in 2007 and were quick to let him know.
One user posted a series of Tweets of Sosa and his wife in the capital, saying: ‘Five days until Sammy Sosa’s birthday… Here he is in London!’
Yet this isn’t the first time Sosa has appeared ‘lighter’, the Daily Mail reports. The 48-year-old, Dominican-born athlete, first appeared to have white skin in 2009 and since then it seems the melanin in his skin has pretty much depleted.
Back in 2009, in an interview with Univision’s Primer Impacto, Sosa claimed he used a cream every night before bed, which softened and lightened his skin, saying:
It’s a bleaching cream that I apply before going to bed and whitens my skin some.
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.
What happened was that I had been using the cream for a long time and that, combined with the bright TV lights, made my face look whiter than it really is. I don’t think I look like Michael Jackson.
Fans took to Twitter to share their shock and dismay at Sosa’s new look:
User Jaron Montana said:
Sammy Sosa looks like the grandpa from the munsters.
Brandon Williams added:
Idk what Sammy Sosa is going thru at this point in his life but this picture is terrifying
One user made the obvious skin lightening comparison and compared the athlete to Michael Jackson:
It appears that Sammy Sosa has become the new Michael Jackson. Kind of creepy. #darktolight.
Another user added, poignantly:
My 1990 Fleer baseball card of Sammy Sosa… I just need to know does the value increase since he’s white now. Lol.
