Fan Touches Foul Ball, Cubs Lose NLCS
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Steve Bartman gained notoriety on the evening of October 14, 2003, for attempting a catch of a foul pop-up in Game 6 of the National League Championship Series between the Chicago Cubs and the Florida Marlins at Wrigley Field.
At the time of the incident, Mark Prior was pitching a three-hit shutout for the Chicago Cubs in the eighth inning. Luis Castillo was batting, with one out and Juan Pierre standing on second base. The Chicago Cubs were leading 3-0, led 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 (aisle 4, row 8, seat 113) 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 Moises Alou ran over to attempt a catch, but Bartman, who was watching the ball and not the fielder, got to the ball first. Alou slammed his glove down in frustration and was seen shouting in Bartman's direction, and the Cubs argued for an interference call. Video replays showed that Alou may have had an opportunity to make the catch if Bartman had not reached for the ball, but the replays support umpire Mike Everitt's call of no fan interference. The rules of baseball clearly specify that fan interference cannot be called on any ball hit into the stands, but if a spectator reaches into the field of play and interferes is the fielding team entitled to legal relief.
Following this incident, the Marlins scored eight unanswered runs and won the game. The next night, Florida overcame a 5-3 run deficit to win 9-6, and won the pennant.
