Can anyone hold a grudge like a Cubs fan?
Monday marks exactly ten years since that infamous game when, in the eighth inning of game six of the National League Championship Series, Cubs fan Steve Bartman reached for a foul ball off Florida Marlins’ Luis Castillo and disrupted what could have been a catch by the Cubs’ Moisés Alou.
The Cubs went on to blow a 3-0 lead in that inning, gave up eight runs to the Marlins and fell short of winning their first NL pennant and World Series berth since 1945. And Bartman went into hiding.
But where is Bartman, who inspired a rap song, a “Family Guy” reference and a documentary film (embedded below) — today? Per the New York Times, the 36-year-old still lives in the Chicago area but has remained off the radar despite hundreds of media requests.
He’s also said to have never returned to Wrigley Field over the past 10 years, though he reportedly remains a Cubs fan.
“He has no ill will toward the Cubs or toward baseball,” Bartman spokesman Frank Murtha told the Chicago Tribune last week. He noted his friend has been frustrated, however, by “those who have commercially exploited the incident.”
So does Bartman deserve the life of a recluse, all these years later? Jon Greenberg, of ESPNChicago.com, writes that it’s time to move on, describing Bartman as a “convenient scapegoat” for a team that was mismanaged for decades.
Monday marks exactly ten years since that infamous game when, in the eighth inning of game six of the National League Championship Series, Cubs fan Steve Bartman reached for a foul ball off Florida Marlins’ Luis Castillo and disrupted what could have been a catch by the Cubs’ Moisés Alou.
The Cubs went on to blow a 3-0 lead in that inning, gave up eight runs to the Marlins and fell short of winning their first NL pennant and World Series berth since 1945. And Bartman went into hiding.
But where is Bartman, who inspired a rap song, a “Family Guy” reference and a documentary film (embedded below) — today? Per the New York Times, the 36-year-old still lives in the Chicago area but has remained off the radar despite hundreds of media requests.
He’s also said to have never returned to Wrigley Field over the past 10 years, though he reportedly remains a Cubs fan.
“He has no ill will toward the Cubs or toward baseball,” Bartman spokesman Frank Murtha told the Chicago Tribune last week. He noted his friend has been frustrated, however, by “those who have commercially exploited the incident.”
So does Bartman deserve the life of a recluse, all these years later? Jon Greenberg, of ESPNChicago.com, writes that it’s time to move on, describing Bartman as a “convenient scapegoat” for a team that was mismanaged for decades.
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Read more https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/14/steve-bartman-incident_n_4098244.html?utm_hp_ref=chicago&ir=Chicago
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