Photo: Jon Durr (Getty)
Cubs fans, amirite?
At least that’s what everyone is saying in St. Louis today. Cardinals fans are taking joy in the fact they actually have something to make Cubs fan’s red in the face over — rare these days considering the Cubs have the superior ball club.
You may have seen the instantly infamous moment by now. A Cubs fan went viral for all the wrong reasons after getting ahold of a baseball thrown from the infield by a Cubs coach during the Cards-Cubs game yesterday afternoon. It was meant for a little boy, but he missed it. Without hesitation, the man behind him proudly snagged it and immediately handed it off to his companion, ignoring said child.
Here’s the play. Notice how the older man to his left (dad?) can’t keep from sharing an embarrassed grin.
When going to a baseball game, DON’T be this guy. pic.twitter.com/pAeiRN6Q2X
— Cut4 (@Cut4) July 22, 2018
Bad, right? The interweb about had a meltdown. I mean, who takes a ball away from a kid?
But holy heavens, there is light at the end of this tunnel. The kid got redemption, later receiving a ball signed by Cubs All-Star shortstop Javy Baez instead.
A @javy23baez signed ball should take care of it. #EverybodyIn pic.twitter.com/4YzUlG8qfN
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 22, 2018
But was our “bad guy” so bad after all? Was this Satan dressed in Cubbie blue, or simply a man enjoying a moment with his family without full context?
“Big shots” fired: Why Is Chris Christie Getting In The Face Of This Cubs Fan?
According to reports, this Cubs fan actually grabbed a previous ball and handed it to the child earlier in the game.
I spoke with people from the Cubs. The man who grabbed the ball on the widely seen video had actually already helped the little boy get a ball earlier. The young man has a game used ball and a Javy Baez ball. All is well. Guy is A-OK so let it go people.
— David Kaplan (@thekapman) July 23, 2018
Some are happy for the clarification, while others are still clamoring that the Cubs fan should have given the kid the second ball (considering the coach threw it directly to him and all).
Josh’s Take
It’s embarrassing how grown adults will do anything for a free baseball. There are FAR WORSE fans in the universe.
Watch this, but I’m warning you, it will make you cringe.
Here’s a bunch of crazy fans stealing foul balls & other items from children and women. pic.twitter.com/Ba1OHTdXIz
— Crazy Fan Takes (@CrazyFanTakes) July 12, 2018
Josh Helmuth is a sports reporter from St. Louis who contributes to Mandatory. He is a Cardinals fan. He does not hate the Cubs.