Joe Ricketts helped finance the purchase of the Cubs by his children in '09GETTY IMAGES
After Cubs Chair Tom Ricketts attempted to distance the team from the apparent racist emails written by his father, Joe Ricketts, MLB in a statement said the leaked emails are "extremely offensive and completely at odds with the values and principles" of the game, according to Madeline Kenney of the CHICAGO SUN-TIMES. Since the comments came to light, the Cubs have reached out to the Chicago chapter of the Council of American-Islamic Relations and the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago, hoping to "meet face-to-face as early as next week." CAIR-Chicago Exec Dir Ahmed Rehab said the organization would be "coming with an open mind to the conversation." Rehab "doesn’t plan to boycott the Cubs as of now." He said there "might be genuine remorse" from other members of the Ricketts family (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 2/6). Rehab said that Tom Ricketts and Cubs VP/Communications & Community Affairs Julian Green "reached out less than 24 hours after the emails were posted." In Chicago, Mark Gonzales notes Joe Ricketts "apologized in his statement." Tom Ricketts’ statement, which noted his father is not involved in the operations of the team, said, "The language and views expressed in those emails have no place in our society." However, several community leaders "expressed their dismay and the need for the Cubs organization to respond with more than just a statement" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 2/6).
MESSY SITUATION: In Chicago, Paul Sullivan writes it is "going to be impossible for the Cubs to spin their way out of this nightmare." Tom Ricketts "can’t totally disassociate the organization from the disturbing beliefs of the man whose fortune helped him and his three siblings" buy the team, "whether his father is still involved in its operation or not." If Joe Ricketts "had no connection to the Cubs, MLB would’ve just ignored the controversy." Sooner or later, Tom Ricketts is "going to have to answer questions about his dad’s hateful emails." The first thing he and his siblings "need to do is apologize to Cubs fans -- and everyone else -- for Joe Ricketts’ hurtful words" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 2/6). Also in Chicago, Steve Greenberg writes it will be "harder than ever to separate the gosh-golly lovability of the Cubs from the political heft of the Ricketts family and all the divisiveness that implies in 2019 America." Joe Ricketts "may not have a day-to-day role in running the Cubs, but he’s cashing ownership checks." Unless that "ceases, his gilded offspring should be questioned at every turn about what steps they are taking to make Cubdom a brighter, better place for all" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 2/6).
FAN FEELINGS: In Chicago, Phil Rosenthal writes this controversy is "not the sort of thing a fan typically wants to have to dwell on, which is why they probably won’t -- no matter how offended they are and should be." Having "sunk so much emotion, time and ... money over the years, fans may feel too invested to abandon a team over anything less than the departure of a beloved star or the relocation of a franchise." Cubs fans "didn’t bail" when former P Aroldis Chapman, who was suspended under MLB's domestic violence policy, came aboard, and they are "not bailing now" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 2/6).
