Photo © MLB via YouTube.
It is impossible to say Wrigley Field and fan interference without seeing a Cubs fan shriek in pain. Who can forget Steve Bartman’s interference, which indirectly resulted in Chicago blowing a 3-0 lead in the 2003 NLCS?
But this time, the fan interference was in the middle of June and featured a spectacular feat, as a man feeding his seven-month-old reached over the railing and grabbed the foul ball bare-handed.
The Cubs fan in question was Keith Hartley, who made the spectacular grab while somehow maintaining grip on his very small son Isaac. The play started when Chicago’s Jason Hammel fouled a pop-up down the first-base line. The new father was afraid the baseball was going to bounce off the railing and hit his son, so he reached over to grab the ball.
Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter!
A week of sports news in your in-box.
We find the sports news you need to know, so you don't have to.
Unfortunately, he pretty much snagged it out of Adrian Gonzalez’s glove. Initially, it was ruled a foul ball, but, after Gonzalez asked for a review, it was deemed fan interference, which means an automatic out.
Now, Keith, who looked impressed with himself after the catch, could not believe the attention he was getting. “I saw Twitter,” he told ESPN. “My Twitter is going insane. A friend from work gave us these tickets as a gift, and I probably have 15 emails in the first ten, 15 minutes.”
In the end, the Cubs beat the Dodgers 1-0 in extra innings. But even after the game, the teams were still talking about the catch, with batter Jason Hammel jokingly calling it, “Best play of the night.”
On January 15, former NBA Champion Gus Williams died from complications of a stroke. Williams,…
On March 11, University of Louisville Athletics Hall of Famer Junior Bridgeman died from a…
Olympic gold medalist Ryan Lochte recently announced that he would auction off three of the…
On March 5, tennis legend Fred Stolle died from cancer at 86 years old. Stolle…
On January 16, legendary sports broadcaster Bob Uecker passed away from lung cancer. Before his…
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson left the Week 16 loss to the New England Patriots…