Bartman's 'Dark Night' coming back to haunt

ESPN -- the New York Yankees/Boston Red Sox Continuous Highlights Network -- is promoting a new documentary, "Let's Pull the Wings off Flies." OK, that's an exaggeration.

[bluesguy0524]

Leave Steve Alone

I'm going to make some money on t-shirts with this slogan, while I make your point, too, John.

[Mike]

Wow. 6 years later and we still torture that poor man. Hope that guy is doing alright with all of this publicity stirring the pot once again.

[Cubs Fan]

Ok sure wish those stalkers - I mean espn would leave Steve alone. Stalking him at home and work come on!! Does Espn stalk Moises Alou for his hissy fit? how bout the sure handed Alex Gonzalez booting a double play ball, sammy missing the cut off man, mark prior coming apart and yes Dusty not going to the mound to get Prior until it was too late. Oh and was it Steves fault the Cubs couldnt win game 7? I think not Its ben six years ESPN-time to move on.

[Chuck D of Valpo]

If only he hadn't reached over the rail to try to catch the ball. "If" is the middle word in life. Leave the young man alone. He has suffered enough. That being said, today is August 1st and both the White Sox and Cubs are in the pennant race. Hope springs eternal and life is good.

[Lou]

Why Bartman was singled out was (and still is) anybody's guess. There were about 6 other people reaching for the ball who literally owe their lives to the poor slob, because they were just as "guilty" as he was.

And Mosies Alou had threw gasoline on the flames when he threw his little temper tantrum right after the "incident".

[sam]

i'm truly embarrassed to be a cubs fan after witnessing the cruelty that this man has had to deal with. leave the guy alone. he's human and he made a mistake. baseball is a game!

[O-Bummer]

Anyone remember when ESPN was credible? I vaguely do, but the memory is rapidly fading...

[Two Buck]

I sincerely hope the Cubs make it to the World Series just so that I can see them lose.

The legions of Cub fams who villified Steve deserve to go to the World Series every year and NEVER win, EVER.

I AM a Cub fan and until the whole ballpark stands up in the seventh inning and says they are sorry to Steve, I will pray for a Cub lose at every game.

[joekoz]

The umpire who failed to make the proper call is the real culprit. These umps are gutless parasites.

[KAG]

Leave him alone. It was a natural reaction to reach for a baseball flying towards you, as did several other fans as well as Bartman.

If you want to go after a bad fan, how about that kid in New York in 1996 that clearly interfered yet umpire Richie Garcia called it a home run. Scumbag David Letterman even invited the cheater onto his show.

[eva]

bluesguy0524 wrote:

Leave Steve Alone
I'm going to make some money on t-shirts with this slogan, while I make your point, too, John.

If you make them, I'll buy one.

Reaching out for that ball literally changed Steve Bartman's life. It's a pity.

[BubbaRayDuddly]

My personal theory is that in the extremely narrow thinking of ESPN, people are just sick and tired of yet another billy goat curse story and have found their new inspiration for why the Cubs have never made it to the World Series in Steve Bartman and his unfortunate story.

Frankly, it is now time to leave the guy alone. He was practically driven out of the state by what happened, so why keep bringing the whole issue up yet again?

Leave Steve Bartman alone, ESPN, and go after someone else worth your ire.

How about Michael Vick?

[AmusedR]

Bartman will always be blamed for the Cubs incompetence. The Cubs were just not good enough. Gotta blame someone instead of take responsibility. And no Cubs player ever used steroids.

[dalmatian847]

Maybe Obama can arrange a "beer summit" with Bartman and Alou.

[De Kingfish]

Yes, leave the man alone. The fault truely lies with the whole Cub organization, they should have come out immediatly with a statement supporting a true, lifelong Cub fan and pointing the finger at their over paid prima donnas, especially Alou.

[Lou]

dalmatian847 wrote:

Maybe Obama can arrange a "beer summit" with Bartman and Alou.

Maybe Dick Cheney can claim Bartman is compromising national security.

[Perry Mason]

Agree they should leave him alone, but stop kidding yourselves. All the energy did get sucked out of that ballpark when he touched that ball. And if you look closely at the photos at the time, he's really the only one close to the ball who's reaching for it. The ball was in play and he touched the ball, and it would have been two outs. He altered the game and the series. IT WAS HIS FAULT.

[MikeD]

Ba Rock wrote:

obama's fault the cubs lost

Bush and Cheney were screwing things up when the Cubs lost. This is just one more thing they screwed up.

[Dog Ear]

1. Moises Alou had no chance to catch the ball, so no John Kass, Bartman did not make one mistake, he made NO MISTAKE.

2. Fox Sports covered that game, and they zoomed in on Bartman and made it a story. He never should have been highlighted like that. The camera even followed him out as he was escorted from the game. The media is to blame for this nonsense, not Moises Alou's overreaction, not the few Cub fans who threw beer at Bartman. This squarely falls on the media, including this stupid column you wrote Kass.

[Rob Dunbar]

Let's just harass the guy six years later while blaming Chicago for harassing him. Hey, that makes sense.

I think most Cubs fans have come to terms with that loss by now. They lost because they cracked under pressure. But, yes, the organization and the fans do owe Bartman a big apology. And then we can all drop the subject (as good sports fans always do).