Steve Bartman

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For criticism see Criticism of Steve_Bartman

Steve Bartman is a resident of Northbrook, Illinois, who gained notoriety on the evening of October 14, Template:By, for attempting a catch of a foul ball in Game 6 of the National League Championship Series between the Chicago Cubs and the Florida Marlins at Wrigley Field. ^[1][2]

Contents 1 Biography 2 Foul ball incident 3 The aftermath 3.1 For the Chicago Cubs and Florida Marlins 3.2 For Bartman 3.3 Destruction of the Bartman ball 3.4 The Bartman Seat 4 Scapegoat factor 5 Defense of Bartman 6 Five years later: Alou speaks about the incident 7 See also 8 References 9 External links

Biography

Bartman grew up in Northbrook, Illinois. His home was located right next to a baseball field, where his father used to hit balls for Bartman and his friends to field. Bartman attended Notre Dame High School for Boys in Niles, Illinois and played varsity baseball while also participating in theater and community service. He graduated high school in 1995, then went on to the University of Notre Dame. At the time of the incident, he was 26 years old and working at a human resources and consulting firm.

Outside of work, Bartman served as a part-time coach for the Renegades, a team for 13 and 14 year olds based in Niles, Illinois. Bartman played for the Renegades in 1992, when the team went 47-10 and won the Palatine League championship.^[3] He was also an avid Cubs fan; in the past, he had traveled to Mesa, Arizona to view the Cubs' spring training.^[4]

Foul ball incident

At the time of the incident, Mark Prior was pitching a three-hit shutout for the Chicago Cubs in the eighth inning. For the Marlins, Luis Castillo was batting, with one out and Juan Pierre standing on second base. The Chicago Cubs were leading the game 3-0, leading the series three games to two, and were five outs away from reaching the World Series for the first time since 1945 and attempting to win it for the first time since 1908. Coincidentally, Game 6 was played on the 95th anniversary of the clinching game of the Cubs' last championship.

Bartman was sitting in a box seat in the front row along the left field corner wall behind the bullpen when a pop foul off the bat of Castillo drifted toward his seat. Cubs left fielder Moisés Alou ran over to attempt a catch, reaching up into the seating area, but Bartman, who was watching the ball and not the fielder (like a few other fans next to him), got to the ball first and appeared to knock it away from Alou. Alou slammed his glove down in frustration and was seen shouting in Bartman's direction, and the Cubs argued for an interference call. However, Bartman had touched the ball on the spectator side of the wall, and umpire Mike Everitt correctly ruled that there was no fan interference.

The aftermath

For the Chicago Cubs and Florida Marlins

Following the incident the Marlins scored eight runs, six of them unearned: ^[5]

• Castillo, given new life, drew a walk. Ball four was a wild pitch from Cubs starter Mark Prior, which allowed Pierre to advance to third base.
• Iván Rodríguez singled to drive in the first run of the inning, making the score 3-1.
• Miguel Cabrera hit a ground ball to Alex S. Gonzalez, who booted (misfielded) the ball. Had Gonzalez fielded the ball properly, the Cubs could have ended the half-inning with a double play. Instead all runners were safe and the bases were loaded.
• Derrek Lee doubled, tying the score and chasing Prior from the game.
• Relief pitcher Kyle Farnsworth issued an intentional walk, then gave up a sacrifice fly to give Florida a 4-3 lead. Another intentional walk again loaded the bases.
• A bases-clearing double from Mike Mordecai broke the game open, making the score 7-3.
• Pierre singled to put Florida ahead 8-3.
• Finally Luis Castillo, whose foul popup initiated the controversy, popped out to second to end the inning. In total, the Marlins had sent twelve batters to the plate and scored eight runs. Florida won the game 8-3.

The next night, Florida overcame Kerry Wood and a 5-3 deficit to win 9-6, and win the pennant. The Marlins would go on to win the 2003 World Series, beating the New York Yankees four games to two.

For Bartman

Bartman had to be led away from the park under escort for his own safety, as Cubs fans shouted profanities towards him and others threw debris onto the field and towards the exit tunnel from the field. News footage of the game showed him surrounded by security as passersby pelted him with drinks and other debris. The game was delayed for approximately 6 minutes.

The stigma encountered by this loss by the Chicago Cubs in their end of season run had many Cubs fans blaming Bartman for the Cubs' series loss, as well as their failed bid to reach the World Series for the first time since 1945.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Bartman's name, as well as personal information about him, appeared on Major League Baseball's online message boards minutes after the game ended. The Chicago Sun-Times revealed his identity. Bartman was hounded by reporters; he had his phone disconnected and did not go to work. In his defense, childhood neighbors said he was a great guy, a lifelong Cubs fan, and a Little League coach for the town of Niles.

The Cubs issued the following press release:

“

The Chicago Cubs would like to thank our fans for their tremendous outpouring of support this year. We are very grateful. We would also like to remind everyone that games are decided by what happens on the playing field — not in the stands. It is inaccurate and unfair to suggest that an individual fan is responsible for the events that transpired in Game 6. He did what every fan who comes to the ballpark tries to do — catch a foul ball in the stands. That's one of the things that makes baseball the special sport that it is. This was an exciting season and we're looking forward to working towards an extended run of October baseball at Wrigley Field.

”

Bartman gained instant national attention, most of it negative or derogatory. Many websites spoofing him were created, and late-night shows such as the David Letterman and Jay Leno shows made him the subject of many jokes. (Letterman did state, in Bartman's defense, that one play alone cannot account for two straight losses.) Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich went as far as telling the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper that "[Bartman] better join the witness protection program." Multiple editorial cartoons showed Bartman in hiding with Osama bin-Laden and Saddam Hussein. The week following the incident an episode of According to Jim aired showing a Bartman lookalike who interferes as Jim tosses his keys to his wife. Jim looks at the character and says "Haven't we talked about that?" An episode of Family Guy depicts Stewie Griffin giving Bartman advice to catch the ball. In the days following the incident, Bartman received offers to do movies or talk shows because of his sudden celebrity status. He declined all such offers. ESPN did air a live interview on SportsCenter with a person claiming to be Bartman, but it turned out to be a prank that fooled the network. Bartman was also offered asylum by Florida Governor Jeb Bush where Marlin fans viewed Bartman in a more favorable light. Bartman was also reportedly offered a job with the Florida Marlins, but Bartman rejected both offers.

Bartman donated the numerous gifts given to him to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation in the name of Ron Santo, a former Cubs third baseman turned broadcaster who suffers from diabetes. Calling this his "final statement," it seems Bartman intends to return to obscurity.

Bartman said, "I look forward to, and expect to return to my normal life activities, including cheering our beloved Cubs toward many more exciting postseasons of play."

Destruction of the Bartman ball

The loose ball was snatched up by a Chicago lawyer and sold at an auction in December. Grant DePorter purchased it for $113,824.16 on behalf of Harry Caray's Restaurant Group. On February 26, 2004, it was publicly exploded in a procedure designed by Cubs fan and Academy Award winning special effects expert Michael Lantieri.

In Template:By, the remains of the ball were used by the restaurant in a pasta sauce. While no part of the ball itself was in the sauce, the ball was boiled and the steam captured, distilled, and added to the final concoction. ^[6]

The Bartman Seat

In the intervening years since the incident, the Bartman seat (Aisle 4, Row 8, Seat 113)^[7] has become a tourist attraction at Wrigley Field.

Scapegoat factor

Bartman became a scapegoat for the Cubs' failure to advance to the World Series, joining other alleged "curses" or "jinxes" of teams that frequently fall short of expectations, such as the "Curse of the Billy Goat", "Curse of the Bambino", "Curse of Muldoon", "Curse of Rocky Colavito", "Curse of Billy Penn", and "Curse of the Black Sox". The Chicago Cubs' "Curse of the Billy Goat", is still referenced to this day, as the Cubs were swept by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2007 playoffs. The "Curse of the Bambino" of the Boston Red Sox has lost its pop-culture cache following their winning the 2004 and 2007 World Series. Likewise, the "Curse of the Black Sox" was regarded as having ended with the Chicago White Sox's victory in the 2005 World Series. However, believers will state, that the "Curse of Rocky Colavito" continues, as the Cleveland Indians have still not won the World Series since 1948 (although they came close in 1997, coincidentally against the Marlins).

Defense of Bartman

After the incident, several of Bartman's friends and family members came to his defense. His father told the Chicago Sun-Times, "He's a huge Cubs fan. I'm sure I taught him well. I taught him to catch foul balls when they come near him." A neighbor added, "He's a good kid, a wonderful son, never in any trouble. I don't think he should be blamed at all. People reach for balls. This just happened to be a little more critical. If Florida didn't score all the runs, you wouldn't be standing here."^[3]

A history teacher from Notre Dame High School for Boys, Bartman's alma mater, recalled, "He was the type of guy who was enjoyable to have in class."^[3] One of Bartman's high school friends wrote to the Chicago Tribune, saying, "He was the kind of person you wanted to be around–funny, yet sincere, and always looking out for his friends. It's been years since I've seen Steve, but I know that he never, ever would do anything to intentionally hurt anybody."^[8]

Five days after the game, a group of 13 and 14 year old baseball players whom Bartman had coached held a rally for Bartman in a park in Northbrook. One boy called him "a great coach, a great person and a great role model". Another remarked that "the foul ball had nothing to do with the rest of the game". The children described Bartman as an excellent hitting coach.^[9]

After the incident, Sun-Times sports columnist Jay Mariotti wrote, "A fan in that situation should try his best to get out of the way, even if he isn't of the mind to see Alou approaching, as Bartman claims. Still, he's also a human being who was reacting in a tense, unusual moment. And the resulting verbal abuse and trash-hurling, followed by the Neanderthal threats and creepy reaction on the Internet, hasn't reflected well on Chicago's sports culture. As it is, everyone thinks the prototypical local fans are those mopes from the Superfans skits on Saturday Night Live."^[10] Baseball commissioner Bud Selig also came to Bartman's defense, telling an interviewer, "[W]hile I understand that people felt so strongly and that their hearts were just breaking, to blame this young man, who is the most devoted Cub fan ... it's just unfair. When I read his statement, it broke my heart.... If you want to blame the Curse of the Bambino and the goat in Chicago or a series of other things, that's fine. But blaming Steve Bartman is just not right."^[11]

Five years later: Alou speaks about the incident

Moisés Alou, now with the New York Mets, was quoted in April 2008 saying: "Everywhere I play, even now, people still yell, 'Bartman! Bartman!' I feel really bad for the kid," and "You know what the funny thing is? I wouldn't have caught it, anyway."^[12] Some columnists and fans view Alou's comments as proof that Bartman deserves their apologies. ^[13][14] However, Alou reportedly denounced that statement, saying "I don't remember that... If I said that, I was probably joking to make [Bartman] feel better. But I don't remember saying that.". Alou also reiterated that fans should forgive Bartman and move on.^[15]

See also

• Jeffrey Maier

References

External links

• Aisle 4, Row 8, Seat 113 on the 3rd base of Wrigley Field, known as the "Bartman Seat"

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