Steve Bartman

[Gino]

He lives a normal life, nothing has happened to him and he's still a Cubs fan. Remember, the rumor that his personal information surfaced on the MLB message boards happened with a FAN posting it... not the media, a FAN.

Riddle me this:
So do you think he is still able to go and see his favorite team still at one of the most historic parks in american history? I highly doubt it. This guy was willing to pay for great seats at the NLCS in Chicago. How bad do you think he would love to see the cubs now. Especially with the best team in the NL right now. I haven't seen the brew crew yet this year and its painful. this guy hasn't seen his team in 5 years at Wrigley Park.

What if you could never go to another Yankee game for the rest of your life? How would YOU feel?

[captnjeter]

Since when has Steve Bartman been barred from Wrigley Field! I know he probably won't get seats like that, stadiums usually keep a list of fans who get called for interference and don't give them seats near the field, but they don't ban them. I think he could go back: he's chosen not to.

There's security all over ball parks today. Do you honestly think Bartman's life is at stake if he went? I don't. He's admitted it's a mistake, he's apologized and he's gotten past it. I think most Cubs fan have, and if they haven't after five years, they probably should.

If you watch ESPN pieces on this or listen to talk radio, I bet you the farm that the media (talk show hosts, newspapers and the like) are the ones saying that it's not Bartman's fault. The fans can't let it die. The die hard fans probably forgive him, but the crowd that goes to the game to get drunk or go just to have a good time are the ones telling Bartman to F--k off.

Say what you want about the media, there are tons of places that take everything out of proportion, ESPN certainly does that a lot, but this is not one of those cases. Ask a radio personality what happened after the incident, and they'll tell you that there were plenty of chances for the Cubs to get out of the inning and Alex Gonzalez's error was the big blow. Ask one of these fans that go to the game for the hell of it, they'll probably all blame Bartman. Not to say there's exceptions to the rules, but the exceptions are anomalies.

As a Yankee fan, I didn't like that they ruled A-Rod out when he slapped the ball out of Arroyo's glove, but at least I have enough sense to know that the right call was made. I was frustrated, but frustrated at my own team, instead of trying to find a scapegoat.

Then again, the only experience with fan interference the Yankees have had recently came from an 11 year old kid called Jeffrey Maier, who should be called the Son of God.

[Gino]

Since when has Steve Bartman been barred from Wrigley Field! I know he probably won't get seats like that, stadiums usually keep a list of fans who get called for interference and don't give them seats near the field, but they don't ban them. I think he could go back: he's chosen not to.
.

I guess New York fans are not as crazy as the ones in Chicago. I've been at a game in Wrigley field and personally caught an opponents Home Run ball. In a matter of seconds i had people throwing beer at me cause I didn't throw the ball back on the field right away. (I'll try to post it one day) Yes, he may be physically able to go to the game, but mentally wouldn't want to face the shame. Even the Brewers game I went to this last weekend vs Minnesota. Fans were tossing peanuts, sodas, and beers at unruley Twins fans. I don't think Bartman would want to face that same fate at a game. The man has received multiple death threats. i wouldn't want to even be in the city that I've had to face death threats from.

[captnjeter]

There aren't that many crazy fans in New York. I mean, there are some really die hard Yankee fans out there and some really die hard Mets fans out there, but not really crazy. Maybe it's because the Yankees have won a lot, the losses don't really bother many Yankee fans. The Mets fans are usually happy if they just compete, although I understand their frustration with this team this year. They should be very upset with how bad they play.

When Derek Jeter went 0-32 in one stretch during the 2004 season, there were boos, but only a small portion booed. I was at the game when he hit 0-30 and the fans were still supporting him, only a few people booed. Compared to Chicago or (even worse) Philly, Jeter got off easy. In those cities, every sports talk station would get call after call demanding for Jeter to be traded. So New York has some pretty benevolent fans.

That's not to say I would want to be a Red Sox fan out with the Bleacher Creatures. The fans out there are merciless, but it's always against the opposing team. I don't think I can imagine Yankee fans booing a Yankee fan for something similar to what Bartman did.

We had a class trip at Hofstra in the fall last year to Yankee Stadium for an Orioles-Yanks game and we had a Red Sox fan with us. He wore a Beckett jersey and a Sox hat. He got booed, a couple of people called him gay, but that's about it. The kid actually enjoyed being a Red Sox fan in Yankee Stadium and didn't get pissed off nor was he being an obnoxious fan. And this was during an intense pennant race! No one threw anything at him or any crazy bullshit, aside from a loud "Red Sox Suck!" chant at the end of the game.