MESA, Ariz. (AP) – Sammy Sosa got some boos. Cheers, too. An old teammate, Carlos Zambrano, greeted him. So did general manager Jim Hendry, who traded the former star away from the Chicago Cubs.

Looking fit and familiar with the No. 21 on his back, Sosa didn’t seem moved either way by the mixed greeting Wednesday from a large crowd of 11,674 at HoHoKam Park, where he spent so many spring afternoons during his 13 seasons with the Cubs.

“You know, regardless, no matter where I play, my heart is always going to be in Chicago,” Sosa after his return with the Texas Rangers, the team he’s made this spring after a year away from the game.

“I don’t think anyone’s going to take my name away from Chicago. … My name is always going to mentioned in Chicago.”

Sosa went 1-for-3 in his return to Mesa, and the Cubs beat the Rangers 11-7 on Daryle Ward’s grand slam in the bottom of the ninth inning off Jesse Ingram.

Starting in right field, Sosa grounded into a forceout, legged out an infield single and hit a hopper that took a wild bounce before Cubs shortstop Ronny Cedeno reached up and made a nice play before throwing him out. Sosa’s still batting .410 this spring.

How did the fans in right field treat him? He used to be their darling, an entertainer when he played the position in Chicago.

“Great,” he said.

Did they yell at him?

“In my favor, yes,” he said.

“He deserves good things from the fans. He did a lot of good things in Chicago,” Zambrano added.

The only major leaguer to have three 60-homer seasons, Sosa was once the most popular sports figure in Chicago, especially during his epic long ball duel in 1998 with Mark McGwire. His home run hop and a series of other quirks, like racing to his position before home games, saluting the fans from his heart and touching his finger to his lips were part of his showmanship.

But the luster began to fade when Sosa was caught using a corked bat in 2003. And when he left the clubhouse before the season finale in 2004, his days with the Cubs were nearly over. He was fined and later said he was tired of being blamed by former manager Dusty Baker for the Cubs’ failures. He was subsequently traded to the Baltimore Orioles.

Sosa hit 545 of his 588 homers with the Cubs. How big a deal are the 12 homers that would land him at the 600 landmark? He actually wants more.

“I’m not going to get in shape for 12 home runs. I’m going to go out there and play. It’s going to happen,” he said. “I’m thinking I’m not satisfied. More than that.”

McGwire was not voted into the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility with speculation about steroid use clouding what he accomplished.

Sosa, who once appeared at the same congressional hearing with McGwire, was asked about his own chances and whether he thought McGwire deserved to be in

“In my heart Mark is a Hall of Famer,” Sosa said. “I played with that guy and he was incredible. … I don’t have any control. I don’t vote.”

And Sosa said he wouldn’t think about his own candidacy until he’s finished playing.

“I’m not thinking about the Hall of Fame. I’m thinking about 2007, putting everything together,” he said.

Now after one lackluster season with the Orioles and a year away from the game, he came to the Rangers’ camp as non-roster player and has already been told he’s been added to the 40-man roster.

When Sosa stepped to the plate Wednesday, he looked out to see his former No. 21 worn by Cubs starter Jason Marquis.

Does he think the Cubs will retire No. 21 some day?

“This is not my call. It’s got to be the president’s call, whatever he decides to do,” Sosa said.

That’s in the future. Right now, Sosa says wants to play baseball.

“Chicago, I played so many years. But I got to step away and focus here in Texas. This is the team that gave me the opportunity,” he said.

Notes: Gerald Laird and Ramon Vazquez connected for back-to-back homers in the Rangers’ three-run second off Cubs starter Marquis. And Laird went deep again in the fifth for a two-run shot, also off Marquis. … Derrek Lee had three RBIs for the Cubs.

AP-ES-03-21-07 2033EDT