'Tear down this ball!'

Did destroying the Bartman ball demolish the curse?

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Infamous ball destroyed in an effort to lift Cubs' "curse"
Feb. 26: Cubs fans go to the extreme to erase a piece of their cursed history as an infamous foul ball. "The Bartman Ball" literally goes out with a bang.

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Keith Olbermann

Anchor, 'Countdown'

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Cubs' 'foul' ball to be destroyed
Feb. 26: Tonight, the Bartman Ball will be destroyed live on Keith Olbermann’s show. Here’s Keith with the 'Mythbusters' on possible ways the ball with be destroyed.

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updated 9:56 p.m. ET Feb. 26, 2004

Arguably, there are perhaps no fans as rabid, as excitable, or as prone to disappointment and heartbreak, as those of baseball’s Chicago Cubs.

The most recent episode of anguish came on Oct. 14^th, during Game 6 of the National League Championship series – just five out separating the hometown heroes from their first World series in almost six decades.

And then, errant fan Steve Bartman, in an ill-advised reach from his seat, knocked the now-infamous ball out of the reach of left-fielder Moises Alou. The Cubs immediately give up eight runs, and don’t go to the World Series.

Story continues below ↓

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Tonight, to exorcise whatever demon it contains, the ball was destroyed.

The Harry Caray’s Restaurant Group, who purchased the Bartman ball at a December auction for $113,824, is going to creatively demolished the ball at approximately 8:30 p.m. ET. It was broadcast on MSNBC, as we have been shamelessly hyping all week.

An 'evil' method was used to demolish this infamous relic. The owners turned to a Hollywood special effects expert named Michael Lantieri to figure out an unforgettable way to pulverize the ball. Lantieri is an Academy Award special effects winner and six-time nominee, as well as a Cubs fan. He was experimenting with different ball destruction ideas in his lab in Los Angeles, and his services ultimately helped decide the best way to demolish this curse.