JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Sammy Sosa pictures and Sammy Sosa bleached skin have been two of Google's most searched terms Tuesday, as pictures of the former baseball slugger circulate on the Internet.

What got the buzz going was Sosa's appearance at the Latin Grammy Awards last week.

The talk has nothing to do with Sosa's home runs or alleged steroid use, but his skin, which appears in the photos to have a much lighter tone than before.

People have been comparing him to Michael Jackson, who had a skin disorder called vitiligo, which causes depigmentation in patches of skin.

"Most people say (Jackson) started wearing the glove because of vitiligo, changes on his hand," said Dr. Leonard Shvartzman, a local dermatologist.

Shvartzman said he thinks Sosa has the same skin disorder in which the body attacks the pigment cells.

"Vitiligo oftentimes occurs on the face, starts around the eyes, and patients who have darker skin like to bleach the rest of their skin out so it blends a little better," Shvartzman said.

Shvartzman suspects that Sosa has also used skin lightening agents, like hydroquinone, to even out his complexion.

Lightening agents might sound extreme but are common place. They're in products that claim to erase age spots and liver spots and are often marketed to women of color who want to alter their complexion.

At an ethnic beauty supply store in Arlington, there are three shelves lined with products, soaps and lotions that claim to lighten the skin.

You are warned to use the products at your own risk.

"I think there are some neurological side effects applying it to large areas of skin," Shvartzman said.

The good news for Sosa if he does have vitiligo is that there are UV treatments capable of reversing it.

The skin disease is more common than most might think. Approximately one out of every 100 people have the disease, and even though researchers are still learning more about it, it's thought to be genetic in nature.