Is that a guy behind him on the picture on ESPN? I feel sorry for him as well. Hopefully the Cubs fan will know it was a accident.
Wow...I just saw the guy on ESPN......I hope this guy doesnt get hurt.......He looked sad man, he knew he had screwed up.......Im assuming he will need security for awhile.........Gonzalez's error was the worst mistake though....
poor guy, the cubbies lose game 7 and he will be the "goat" for another 50+ years that said, it wasn't like he interfered with out #3 the cubs still were leading
I want everybody to look at this picture on ESPN right now. Look how EVERYBODY in the area has their hands outstretched trying to catch the balll. Its one thing if this guy was the only one there who was unaware of the situation, and tried to go for the ball... but he wasn't. EVERYBODY tried to catch that foul ball... this poor guy had to be the one to get a hand on it. ESPN is pretty hypocritical... both sportscenter and baseball tonight said the fan should be allowed to go for that ball, and it was unfortunate. Then, ESPN.com posterizes him and it basically looks like it cost them the game. Shamless...
That innig was full of mistakes the botched double play ball is what killed the Cubs. The fan made a mistake, but it could have happened to anybody. The natural thing is to go for the ball, if your in foul ball territory with your glove on your obviously waiting for a ball, and when one comes close you usually do whatever it takes to get it. Its just the natural thing to do.
Ahhhh I feel sorry for him -- his life in Chicago is ruined (if they lose tomorrow). If the Cubs win it will just be one of those funny things, but if they lose *yikes*. I can't believe espn is running this headline how cruel he just got caught up in the moment.
Just came back from a bar in Wrigleyville. I feel really bad for that kid. Granted it's stil fresh in people's mind and everyone's a little drunk, but they're ALL gunning for him. not good.
When I saw the thread title I thought the guy was murdered. I fear for his safety. Very misleading thread title.
The poll on ESPN have 36.1 percent of the voters blaming the fan for the lost. Which is leading the poll. I feel real sorry for him right now.ESPN needs to take his picture off of their site.
The sad part is it's just a game and some fool or a group of fools will either try to beat him up or burn his house down. Sad world we live in.
If the Cubs lose this series he will be the next Buckner. He will probably have to move out of town, most likely to Florida, but on the bright side he will always be a part of baseball history and they can never take that away from him.
This issue is a direct representation of why people are idiots. First of all, it's questionable whether Alou catches that ball, regardless of whether THAT particular fan touches it or not. Second of all, you have to be pretty terrible to give up 8 runs in an inning. If Alex Gonzalez doesn't boot a routine ground ball, there's an 80% chance they get out of that inning with a 3-1 lead. If that fan hadn't touched the ball, people would be shouting "Bill Buckner!" at Gonzalez. It's also important to note that the foul ball did not result in runners advancing, unlike the Gonzalez error. It is obvious that the error was MUCH more significant in the outcome of the game than the foul ball, yet people and the media seem to place more emphasis on it, because they are dumb. In an unrelated note, for some reason, the fan with the headphones on reminds me of Cameron Diaz's brother in 'Something About Mary'.
Now take a look at this pic..........especially where his hand is in relation to Alou's glove........... True, he want the only CUB FAN reaching for the ball but...... Its almost as if he PUSHED Alou's glove out of the way......... And that's why he has a target on his back in the eyes of the Cub Nation.......... But in all honesty..................if Prior HAD struck out Castillo on the very next pitch INSTEAD of walking him, no one would remember this play involving this poor fan. It would have been a little footnote instead of a potentially historic moment in infamy in Cubs history. Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda.............
From the Tribune......... Pop-foul fan draws hostility —and sympathy Escorted away for protection By Chris Malcolm and Melissa Isaacson Tribune staff reporters October 14, 2003, 11:47 PM CDT Last seen, the fan who tried to catch the ball was wearing a jacket on his head and being led into the underbelly of Wrigley Field for his own protection. He may forever be referred to as "that fan" or any number of other names after he reached for a pop foul that Cubs left fielder Moises Alou was about to catch for the second out in the eighth inning of Game 6 of the National League Championship Series, with the Cubs leading 3-0 and five outs away from the World Series. But the ball struck the fan's hand and bounced free, opening the door to an eight-run Marlins rally and an eventual Cubs loss. Within moments, the fans down the left-field line began booing and chanting, "Get him out." The object of their scorn still sat in his front-row seat, wearing headphones and a Cubs cap, as the Marlins began to pile up runs. "It cost us the game, pal," shouted one fan. Another fan tossed a beer cup toward the man's seat, but it fell short. Three security guards ejected one fan after throwing beer. "I hope you're happy," the man screamed. "You cost us a [expletive] World Series." Another fan yelled, "You could tell we're better than Boston or he'd be dead already." Within a few minutes, Cubs security closed access to the lower levels of the stands and kept reporters out of the area. Moments later, another fan who said his name was Jim Cuthbert was escorted shouting from the area. Cuthbert said ushers took him out of the park because had gone to confront the fan who had touched the ball and refused to return to his seat. "I said, 'What the hell is wrong with you?'" said Cuthbert, who added he caught the man's eye and challenged him to come outside. Cuthbert said the man wouldn't answer. Cuthbert said he wanted to know why he had been kicked out while the fan who touched the ball was allowed to remain. "The [usher] said, 'Sir, take your seat,' and I said, 'I ain't taking my seat. Why is he still sitting there?' So then they said, 'Get out of here.'" Pat Looney, 34, was was seated nearby and was in a more forgiving mood. "Hey, it looked like it was out of play," Looney said in an interview after the game. "I don't blame the guy. He was looking up at the ball, not down on the field." Looney said nobody in that part of the stands saw Alou coming, especially the fan in Seat 11, Row 9. "If I had seen Alou coming, I would have pushed [the other fan] out of the way," Looney said. Looney, who said he was a Chicago firefighter, said he already received numerous calls on his cell phone from friends and co-workers watching TV. "I said, 'I didn't touch it.'" Looney said. At the end of the eighth, team security escorted the fan away from the stands. Officials said he had asked to stay at the stadium until it cleared before he made his way home. A man who was with him was taken out of Wrigley and hastily put into a taxi. "We're not giving away any names," said a Wrigley Field official. "We're protecting our patrons." Some fans were actually sympathetic. "Ninety-nine percent of these fans would have done the same thing," said one spectator as the insults rained down. "They're all hypocrites." The incident recalled memories of Jeffrey Maier, a 12-year-old Yankees fan, who reached into the field of play over Baltimore right fielder Tony Tarasco in Game 1 of the 1996 American League Championship Series, to catch a ball hit by the Yankees' Derek Jeter. The ball was ultimately ruled to be a game-tying home run, and the Yankees went on to win
It's stupid that a fan is even able to interfere with the game anyway. A stupid rule in a rather dull sport.
