Cubs fire DJ who played song with references to violence

The 1990s song “Smack My B**** Up” by United Kingdom artist Prodigy was heard throughout Wrigley Field after closer Aroldis Chapman’s ninth inning appearance during the Cubs’ Sunday night loss to the St. Louis Cardinals.

Chapman, a left-hander who throws an average of 102 miles per hour, started the 2016 season off by serving a 30-day suspension issued by Major League Baseball for his involvement in an incident with his girlfriend, in which he allegedly choked her and fired eight shots from his handgun into the air. With the Yankees falling out of the playoff race, Chapman was dealt in July to the Cubs, who hoped that Chapman’s incident wouldn’t join him into the spotlight of a historic pennant chase.

The Cubs declined to release the name of the DJ, one of two who work the sound system.

The song choice was in incredibly poor taste, to say the least. MTV also banned the video, which featured explicit sex scenes, groping of multiple women and drug use and was labeled misogynistic due to scenes depicting violence against women (despite the – spoiler alert – reveal that the protagonist is female). But, again, in what circumstance would that song ever constitute good timing? It was “unfortunate and should not have happened”, according to the team. Well, they didn’t help themselves in that cause on Sunday with the music they used to play Chapman off the mound.

But based on the Cubs’ stance, it appears they’re missing the point.

Those “stronger controls” are only part of the solution.