Goat's head delivered to Wrigley Field on Wednesday, had US Dept. of Agriculture tag on its ear

4/11/13, "Mayor: Goat's head at Wrigley 'speaks for itself'," Chicago Tribune, Byrne, Mitchell

"Mayor Rahm Emanuel said today that a goat's head dropped off at Wrigley Field is no laughing matter, but tell that to Cubs players....

A man drove up to the ballpark around 2 p.m. Wednesday and handed a package to a security guard at Gate K, according to police and Cubs spokesman Julian Green.

The man asked the guard to deliver the package to Ricketts, then got back into his truck and drove away, police said. Security officials found the goat's head inside. The head was all black and had a U.S. Department of Agriculture tag on its ear, police said.

The package did not contain a note and was never delivered to Ricketts, police said. The head was taken to the city's Animal Control department, police said.

At an unrelated news conference today, Mayor Rahm Emanuel said he talked to Ricketts Wednesday night and promised that police will take action....

"No arrests have been reported but police are investigating the "intimidating package," Police News Affairs Officer Veejay Zala said.

The Cubs are in the middle of highly publicized negotiations with city officials and neighborhood interests regarding proposed changes at the ballpark, including whether the team should be able to install a Jumbotron-like scoreboard and increase the number of night games from 30 to about 40.

Goats are part of Cubs lore, dating back to a supposed curse placed on the team by the late Billy Goat Tavern owner William Sianis during the 1945 World Series after Sianis' goat was denied entrance into the park.

Columnists including Mike Royko and David Condon helped popularize the legend, and Cubs officials over the years have repeatedly denied the existence -- or at least the relevance -- of the curse."

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