Steve Bartman turns down proposed trip to Cubs wild-card game

(AP) Steve Bartman will not be attending the Chicago Cubs wild-card play-in game next Wednesday.

Despite a GoFundMe campaign designed to raise money so the maligned Cubs’ fan could travel to PNC Park in Pittsburgh or return to Wrigley Field for the do-or-die game, he has elected to decline the offer.

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Here’s the official word from Bartman’s longtime spokesman Frank Murtha.

“It’s nice of these people to think of Steve but he won’t be taking advantage of the offer,” Frank Murtha said. “He’s perfectly capable of attending the game on his own, though he has no intention of being at the wild-card game.”

No surprise here. Though we’re pretty sure the gesture was well-intended, Bartman obviously has no interest in returning the to public eye.

We certainly can’t blame him for that. Not after the way he was vilified following this incident during Game 6 of the 2003 NLCS.

Bartman hasn’t spoken publicly since that moment. We’ve only heard from friends, neighbors and his spokesman in the dozen years that have passed, which is a sad result of the passionate anger his flub created.

Keque Escobedo, a self-proclaimed lifelong Cubs fan, was behind the GoFundMe hoping it would be a way for other Cubs’ fans to make amends. The page was more than halfway to its goal of $5,000 when Bartman’s spokesman officially declined on his behalf. Per Escobedo’s message, the money raised will now be donated to the Alzheimer’s Association.

“Steve is glad the money will go to a good cause and will be cheering on the Cubs as always,” Murtha said.

We’d all probably agree that seeing Bartman return for a Cubs’ playoff game would have been pretty neat. We’d all better agree that money going to charity in the best possible outcome. Well done by Keque Escobedo.

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