Apocalypse averted....

[rsc]

...unfortunately. But it's not fair to blame the fan... he may have cost an out, but he sure isn't responsible for the eight runs.

Comments

Bummed

[drevilmoo.livejournal.com]

Despite my usual hostility to mlb, I was hoping to see the cubs make it this time. Poor guys.

[bitty.livejournal.com]

still bummed :( doesn't bode well for us.

[rsc.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't necessarily say that. Try to put a positive spin on it: a team that was poised to win the series at home suffered a shocking reversal in game 6, and then went on to lose game 7. Good precedent for tonight, wouldn't you say?

[jss]

Damn. I was hoping to blow up the planet just before the last out of the last game of the Cubs/BoSox world series. :-(

[bitty.livejournal.com]

foiled again, eh?

would you settle for some bridge sometime soon?

[jss]

Sure, why not?

[glass-diva.livejournal.com]

I was looking forward to a nice flamey apocalypse too, but I think (as a (mostly apathetic) Mets fan) I'm supposed to be glad the Cubs lost...

[spwebdesign.livejournal.com]

Sure it is, and sure he is. What most of us don't realize is the high degree of concentration involved in any professional sport and especially in professional baseball. The fan's gaffe goes beyond simply preventing one run. It broke the team's focus. You think Gonzalez, the NL's best fielding shortstop, bobbles that routine grounder two batters later if the fan hadn't intruded on the game as he had? You can argue that the good team's overcome that sort of thing, but baseball is a mental and psychological game, and the fan interference played a HUGE factor in the team's collapse.

[rsc.livejournal.com]

There's no way of knowing what Gonzales would have done -- in fact, if Castillo is out instead of walking, infielders are positioned differently, pitchers pitch differently, batters bat differently, etc. But I refuse to blame the fan, who did exactly what any other fan would have done (and what all the fans around him were trying to do).

I didn't see the game, but of course I saw several replays of the event, and I wouldn't say it was 100% certain that Alou would have caught the ball even if the fan(s) had stayed out of the way.

Whatever the case, death threats are not really an appropriate response.

[bitty.livejournal.com]

Whatever the case, death threats are not really an appropriate
response.

I dunno' - a human sacrifice just might do the trick in terms of removing a curse. Maybe $DEITY just wants some serious devotion, se how far Chicagoans are willing to go.

[jss]

Yeah, but sacrificing some random fanboy is Just Not Right.

Sacrifice most of the Executive and Legislative branches of the gummint. And select members of the Judiciary while you're at it.

[spwebdesign.livejournal.com]

I agree with your first sentence. But I take umbrage (I do get bonus points for using this word, right?) at the idea, espoused by most in the media, any or all other fans would have done the same. I consider myself a very knowledgable and aware fan. Not only would I not have reached for that ball, because I would have looked around to see if any fielder was making a play for it, I probably would have held my arms out to try to shield others from the ball.

[rsc.livejournal.com]

Not only would I not have reached for that ball

I like to think that I would have done the same, but I've never actually sat that close to the field, and never been in a spotition where my action would make a difference. So I just don't know. (Actually, when I'm in the stands, I find the idea of a foul ball anywhere near me to be nothing short of terrifying, but that may be in part because any ball that came anywhere near my regular seats would have to be a screaming line drive.)