Wrigley Field and fan chaos have a storied presence in baseball lore. It goes as far back as the 1970s, when, during the Chicago Cubs’ 5-4 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies, veteran outfielder Billy Williams broke a 0-for-19 season hitless streak with an RBI single. But the spotlight was certainly stolen by the fans in the stands, who fought among themselves until one fan dropped from the bleachers and hundreds of other fans followed and fought with the Cubs players. And yet, nearly six decades later, such chaos is still being witnessed.
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The Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals were busy trying to clinch a win and secure the series at Wrigley Field. And while the visitors eventually triumphed with an 11-4 scoreline, a viral fan moment stole the spotlight.
“Pushing a fan, let alone a woman, over a baseball is an absolute disgrace,” Dan Clark wrote on X, uploading the short clip. “This [expletive] deserves a life ban from MLB games, and he should also be charged with assault. Zero tolerance. No excuses.”
The Cubs entered Sunday with the series tied and needed one more win to secure the series against the Cardinals. However, the visitors went up 3-0 by the second inning. Then came the third, and Crow-Armstrong entered the batter’s box with two outs and James Triantos on first base. He hit the 94-mph fastball from starter Hunter Dobbins, and it ended up dropping in the right-field bleachers.
The fans immediately got busy trying to get PCA’s 28th home run ball. As the camera zoomed in, a guy in a gray throwback No. 7 Kenny Lofton jersey appeared to be shoving a girl beside him. The young female fan was trying to get the ball and got in the way of the Lofton fan. So, the guy grabbed her left arm and pushed her backward while another fan retrieved the ball.
The outfield bleachers at Wrigley Field have a historic reputation of being rowdy. The fans earned the nickname of Bleacher Bums for their high-energy antics and celebrations. While there’s unmatched visible passion among the crowd in that area, it doesn’t always end on a positive note.
Back on July 21, during a Chicago Cubs vs. Minnesota Twins game, an older fan had a confrontation with a younger guy. It started with the young male not standing up during the national anthem. The older person initially warned the boy, and when he refused to show respect to his country, he smacked him in the head and forced him to stand up.
In fact, sometimes, it goes way beyond a swat.
Back in September 2018, during Hispanic Heritage Night at Wrigley Field, a fight broke out in the bleachers after one fan reportedly shouted some racial slurs.
While Sunday’s incident was far less serious, it still managed to grab attention from other fans, and they offered some sharp criticism online.
Fans online rip into the bleachers incident
“That’s not even a woman. That’s an adolescent girl,” wrote one fan, emphasizing unacceptable the behavior was.
“It’s a [expletive] Cubs game. Nobody’s surprised,” commented a user, while another fan echoed the same frustration, writing, “Cubs fans are the biggest losers in baseball.”
Fighting in the stands or throwing expletives at each other aren’t anything new in baseball, but many think that the Cubs fans have broken some boundaries on multiple occasions, which forced them to detest the Wrigley Field crowd.
One such incident can be dated back to 2000. The Los Angeles Dodgers were visiting Chicago for a regular season series. Their catcher Chad Kreuter was sitting in the bullpen when a fan struck him in the head and snatched his cap from behind. It ended up in a brawl between the LA players and a few fans, with three of them eventually being arrested.
That’s why many refuse to take any offensive action from the Cubs fans lightly. Hence, one fan wrote, “What is wrong with people? Unreal.”
But there are still some who see the pushing as just another incident in the ballpark.
“Hey man, gotta do what you gotta do. Fans are crazy 🤪 for PCA… especially guys,” read one comment.
They think that pushing or shoving is part of the passion for the sport. But is it though? That’s what most people are reacting to. The incident may have started over a home run ball, but for many fans online, pushing a young female fan was far more troubling than the souvenir was worth. That’s why some even urged the authorities to ban the guy from the stadium.