Here is why the Cubs lost ALL because of that fan [View All]

[Resistance]

Ok I know there are too many threads talking about the Cubs game last night, but in this thread, I want to show how, pitch by pitch, or at least, batter by batter, the Cubs lost the game all because of the fan who interfered.

See, I am hearing all day today about how the Cubs players also blew it. How awful Prior's pitching was in the 8th. How Dusty should have taken him out sooner. How Dusty should have done this, should have done that. And of course, how awful the Gonzalez error was. The point I will make here is that ok I agree with all those points and all the blame going to the Cubs players and coaching. BUT, even though I agree, I argue that the game STILL would have been won by the Cubs had that fan not interfered. That fan cost the Cubs the game, and possibly the series.

Proving my point is pretty easy to do actually: all you have to do is go back and retrace the rest of the inning/game play by play, pitch by pitch, but in order for my theory to be proven correctly, you have to show what would have happened IF the fan doesn't interfere and Alou catches the ball that was heading straight towards Alou's mitt. Also, you have to account for all the Cubs errors and mistakes. I argue that even if the Cubs go on and play the rest of the inning through as badly as they did, with the Gonzalez error, and with Marlins batters getting their hits on Prior, you can STILL say that the Cubs WOULD HAVE WON if it hadn't been for that fan.

Now let's get to the meat and potatoes: Let me prove my case. Let's go back to the game, it's 1 out with a runner on 2nd, and Prior pitches a 3-1 pitch (might have been 3-2, I don't remember but it doesn't matter either). The ball is hit to that left wall, and if the fan doesn't interfere, Alou catches the ball (we can assume with reasonable certainty), the batter is retired (instead of walking the next pitch to 1st), and it's 2 outs.

Now let's follow the rest of the inning through to completion, pretending that Alou makes the catch, and everything else happens just as it did. Remember, in order for me to prove my point, I have to still account for the Gonzalez error, and the rest of the Marlins getting on base. Again, I argue that regardless of Cubs mistakes and errors, That Fan STILL cost the Cubs the game. So, the next batter was Pudge, who, remember, got a base-hit into left field. At this point, you would have had the runner from 2nd go to 3rd, and Pudge gets to 1st. The next play was the Gonzalez error. On this play, the guy on 3rd would come home (just as he did in the real game), Pudge would go to 2nd, and the batter makes it to 1st. The score now would be 1-3, with nobody on third, and runners at 1st and 2nd. The next batter got a hit again to left field, which in the real game scored two runners (because in the real game, bases were loaded). However, IF Alou makes that catch, only 1 runner would have been in scoring position. The next batter hit a fly-ball to right field, was caught, and would have ended the inning with a 3rd out instead of a 2nd out.

And the score to end the inning would have been Marlins 2, Cubs 3.

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THAT FAN cost the Cubs the game last night. Instead of the fly-ball in right field being Out number 3, it was Out number 2, allowing another runner to score, and the inning continued as it did.

Again, my point here is pretty simple: You can talk about how horrendous the Cubs played for the rest of that inning, and it's a valid enough point, EXCEPT that it DOES NOT MATTER. Even if you account for how badly the Cubs players were in the 8th inning last night, you can STILL PROVE that THAT FAN is entirely to blame, by retracing the rest of the inning exactly as it had happened, except you have to retrace as if Alou had caught the ball.

So, if my memory on last night's game is errant, or if someone can show me how in some way I have overlooked something, let me know. But I've been going over that inning in my mind all day today, and the conclusion is crystal clear.

THAT FAN IS TO BLAME.