Remembering Steve Bartman - Part 2

...Game 6 of the 2003 National League Championship took place at Wrigley Field in Chicago, IL. Phenom starting pitcher Mark Prior was on the mound for the Cubs. The Marlins came to Chicago with a 3-2 deficit in the series. Fans went to Wrigley, commentators went to Wrigley, sports officials went to Wrigley, everyone went to Wrigley with one thought in mind; one more win, if the Cubs win tonight, they're going to the World Series to play the Yankees for the first time since 1945.

The now infamous picture of Prior pointing to
Bartman, telling the umpires to call fan interference

The first two innings of the game went smoothly. In the third inning, the Cubs scored on a base hit, making it 1-0 Cubs. Later on, the Cubs would score again, extending their lead 2-0. Once more, the Cubs would knock in another batter and make it a 3-0 after seven innings. With just six outs left, the Cubs were poised on making history, and the atmosphere at Wrigley was one of excitement, hope, and for some, victory. In the top of the 8th inning, The Marlins hit a high fly ball that was caught by Moises Alou, lowering the Cubs to just five outs away. The next batter, Luis Castillo, proved to be a tough one for Prior. Prior had thrown one hundred and twelve pitches by this point, and eight of them to this Castillo at-bat alone. On the ninth pitch, Prior's ball was knocked into left field. As Alou chased after the ball, many fans in the left side of the ball park, including Steve Bartman, reached up for the ball. Just as the ball was coming down, both the fans, Bartman, and Alou reached up for the ball. Many thought Alou had the catch made, until Bartman's left hand went on top of Alou's glove. Bartman deflected the ball from Alou's glove, knocking it away. Alou landed back in the field, angered and embarrassed that he let such an easy looking catch escape from him. In the now infamous moment afterwards, Prior pointed down the left field line and called for the umps to call fan interference. The umps called that the ball was out of play anyway, and fan interference was not called. Prior and the Cubs returned to play.

Alex Gonzalez (right) who misfielded a tailor-made double play
allowing the bases to load and leaving everyone safe.

Almost as quick as the play occurred, the wheels fell off and the Curse of the Billy Goat came to life. Prior's next pitch was a hanging curveball that Luis Castillo knocked into a base hit, which put Juan Pierre and Castillo on base with only one out. Next, Ivan Rodriguez knocked a 0-2 pitch into the outfield, which scored Pierre and made it 3-1 Cubs. Another infamous play occurred after this, in which Miguel Cabrera dinked a ground ball that was towards Cubs shortstop Alex Gonzalez (who had the best fielding percentage in the league). However, Gonzalez dropped the ball, and all the bases were loaded and everyone was safe. Had the ball been fielded correctly, Gonzalez would have made the double play and the Cubs would've been out of the inning with just one run scored. Next, Derrek Lee (a future Cub) rocked a double into the outfield to score Castillo and Rodriguez, tying the game at 3. Prior was removed from the game with 121 pitches thrown, and replaced with Kyle Farnsworth. Farnsworth intentionally walked Mike Lowell to reload the bases, then a sac fly scored Cabrera from third, making it 4-3 Marlins with two outs. Farnsworth again intentionally walked the next batter to load the bases. Next, Farnsworth let Mike Mordecai rock a base-clearing double into left field, which was misfielded by Moises Alou. This allowed all three Marlins on base to score, making it 7-3 Marlins. Farnsworth was booed off the mound and replaced by Mike Remlinger. Remlinger let a single go by Juan Pierre (the Marlins had now batted around), which scored Mordecai from third, making it 8-3 Marlins. Finally, Remlinger got Luis Castillo (who started the whole meltdown) to pop out, ending the madness, leaving the Marlins with a monstrous eight-run inning. The Cubs never recovered, and the very next inning, lost to the Marlins 8-3, and forced a game 7 that following night.

Bartman

However, the broadcast was split between the meltdown and the growing anger from Cub fans, who labeled Bartman as "the one who got in the way". Keep in mind that Wrigley Field has no jumbo tron, or big screen that let anyone see who the fan was that knocked the ball away; only fans who sat near Bartman knew who it was. The only reason other people found out was that the people that were on Waveland Ave. (the street that runs parallel to Wrigley's left field side) were watching one fan that had a TV on his head. They immediately saw the telecast, saw the fan, and began the now famous "Asshole, asshole" chant. The chant started during Prior's final pitches, and continues all the way 'til the end of the inning. Suddenly, things at Wrigley got pretty bad. Now that most fans knew what "the guy" looked like, they began pelting him with beer, hot dogs (some half-eaten) and other forms of trash and debris. As the meltdown kept going, the atmosphere at Wrigley went from victory, to gut-wrenching defeat, anger, and eventually even hostility, as the fans turned on Bartman, shoving him and throwing food at him. During the ninth inning, the Wrigley security staff were called in to escort Bartman and his friends from the ballpark. Every fan on the way pushed, shoved, screamed, and threw stuff at him. Bartman covered his face and was escorted up a service ramp, never to be seen by broadcasts again.

Kerry Wood

Game 7 occurred that following night at Wrigley. Despite that the Cubs were at home, and Kerry Wood was on the mound, the stench of the Billy Goat lingered in Wrigley. The entire crowd were very somber and awaiting the next stroke of bad luck; gone was the Cubs' sense of "immortality". The game started off with the Marlins rocking a three run homer, making it 3-0 Marlins. However, in the fifth inning, Gonzalez and Kossa both had singles, and were knocked in by Kerry Wood's three-run homer, tying the game at 3. In the sixth inning, Moises Alou rocked a two run homer than gave the Cubs a 5-3 lead. By now, Wrigley was up and wild, feeling with nine outs to go, the Cubs were going to make up for last nights efforts. However, the Cubs would once again flounder, losing game 7 and the series to the Marlins 9-6. The fans remained in the stadium, as if paying tribute to a fallen hero during a funeral service...

What did this downfall mean for Bartman? The poor guy was escorted from Wrigley Field under strict security, while all fans pelted him with everything they could find. Bartman eventually escaped the ball park and was ordered to join a witness relocation program. However, Bartman refused to do anything of the nature. He currently is believed to still reside in Chicago, working at the same firm he has since the incident...

How about the Cubs? Well, the 2003 NLCS is still the farthest the Cubs have reached since 1945. In 2004, the Cubs failed to make the playoffs, and in the 2004-05 offseason, traded big league hitter Sammy Sosa. In 2005 and 2006, more misfortune rattled the Cubs and kept them from participating in the playoffs. In 2007, the Cubs won their division and went to the NLDS, where they were swept by the Diamondbacks. In 2008, celebrating the centenary of their last World Series win, the Cubs showed promise, exceeding their 2003 season record and clinching their second consecutive division title. However, the Cubs were again swept by the Dodgers in the NLDS, and haven't been back to the playoffs since...

The Cubs are a team of legend. Whether you like them or not, they're legendary. The Cubs are indeed the "lovable losers" of the MLB. Yet, everyone loves the Cubs! The Chicago Cub fan is more than just rooting for your team when you go the ball park, it's a lifestyle of lore that has grown into its own pop culture phenomenon...