Slammin' Sammy slugs No. 500

Chicago Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa has joined an elite club.

On Friday night in Cincinnati, he became the 18th player in major league history to hit 500 homeruns.

Sosa reached the historic milestone in the seventh inning on a pitch thrown by Reds' reliever Scott Sullivan. The pitch was a 1-2 fastball that Sosa belted over the right-center field wall.

"When I made contact, I knew the ball was gone and I'm like, `Wow, I got it,"' Sosa told the Associated Press. "When I went to the plate, I pointed to the sky to show my respect to God.

"I'm happy about it. There's still no time to celebrate because it's a long season. I've got to keep my focus."

Friends and family were on hand at Cincinnati's Great American Ball Park to witness Sosa make history.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Sosa, 34, is the first Latin player to reach 500 homeruns.

As a member of the Texas Rangers, Sosa hit his first homerun on June 21, 1989 off of future Hall of Fame pitcher Roger Clemens.

Sosa's 500th homer was a solo shot. He was 1 for 4 on the evening striking out once and getting hit by a pitch in the Cubs 10-9 loss.

Sosa could be the first of four players to reach the milestone this season.

Rafael Palmeiro of Texas has 491 homers, Fred McGriff of the L-A Dodgers has 478 and Cincinnati's Ken Griffey Junior has 469.

Eddie Murray is next ahead of Sosa with 504 homers.

with files from the Associated Press