Divorcing couple in court over Cubs tickets

Wife’s emergency petition leads to husband having to buy her a seat for Game 5

CHICAGO— The frenzy among Chicago Cubs fans to snag pricey and scarce tickets to World Series games at Wrigley Field has now landed in divorce court.

Court documents obtained by The Associated Press from Cook County Circuit Court on Friday say a suburban mom this week submitted an “Emergency Petition For World Series Tickets” to see Game 5 Saturday against the Cleveland Indians. A judge’s order says the tickets for Saturday are held by Nancy Riddle’s estranged husband and fellow Cubs fan John Riddle.

Judge Marya Nega ruled the husband can keep the tickets for himself and the couple’s 12-year-old son but should pay for a new ticket for Nancy Riddle in a “comparable” section to his. The cheapest available tickets start at around $3,000.

The Cubs’ last World Series title was in 1908.

Standing-room tickets on sites such as StubHub started at around $2,500, with tickets for most actual seats going for at least five figures and some sellers asking for more than $100,000 for prime box seats.

The husband’s lawyer, Michael Berger, declined to name his client in a Thursday interview. He said his client landed the World Series tickets because he bought a season-ticket package deal with his friends before divorce proceedings began.

Berger, a Chicago White Sox fan, said he objected to the notion that the request for the judge to intervene was an emergency because the Cubs might not make it back to another World Series in the wife’s lifetime.

“It is likely — regrettably — that they will be back to the World Series again soon,” he said.