It was a terrible moment. Not in a cosmic sense, of course, but in a way that millions of baseball fans could recognize — and realize that, but for the grace of God, it could have happened to them.

Steve Bartman. The Chicago Cubs and Florida Marlins in Game 6 of the 2004 National League Championship Series. A foul fly lofted almost directly at Seat 113, Row 8, Aisle 4, occupied by a bespectacled young man in a green turtleneck and Cubs cap under a set of headphones. He rises to attempt a catch …

What fan would have behaved differently? A few would duck or recoil and let other hands grasp at the ball. But most of us?

We’re going to attempt a catch. The ball is right there! Even if Cubs left fielder Moises Alou is only a few feet away, about to squeeze the ball (he insists) for the second out in the eighth inning of a game the Cubs led 3-0 and one that, had they won, would put them in the World Series for the first time since 1945.

You know the rest. Bartman muffs the catch. An enraged Alou throws his glove and glares into the stands. Almost universal and immediate censure from media and Wrigley Field fans as the Marlins score eight runs to snatch victory. Bartman rescued from his seat by security men, leaving the stadium in disguise. The Cubs losing the next day in Game 7.

The Steve Bartman Incident. Which earned him his own wiki entry and made him an anti-celebrity for more than a decade.

It is a searing moment in an odd way. Perhaps because most of us confess, “That could have been me.” And it was far more than one incident out of thousands in “just another game”.

It was a stain on the reputations of Cubs fans and Chicago sports and perhaps on all baseball fans for feeling empowered to attack Bartman for stupidity (let Alou catch the ball!) and/or greed (oh, your souvenir is more important than the Cubs in the Series?). One of the TV analysts noted how Cubs fans throw opposition home runs back on to the field, adding, “Maybe they should throw him on the field.”

Ha ha.

Feelings ran high in Chicago. We were left with an impression of Bartman trying to disappear into the crowd — as he unsuccessfully attempted to do in Game 6.

Bartman never spoke publicly about what happened, as he tried to return to living and working in Chicago, but he remained notorious as part of the “curse” of the Cubs not winning the World Series since 1908. (ESPN did a documentary on Bartman, entitled “Catching Hell”.)

That curse, such as it was, was lifted last year when the Cubs won the World Series and, today, the Cubs seemed eager to make peace with Steve Bartman — and themselves — by giving him a 2016 championship ring with his name on it, a ring said by Forbes to be worth $70,000.

Bartman, as always, did not respond to interview requests. But he released a statement through his lawyer.

“Although I do not consider myself worthy of such an honor, I am deeply moved and sincerely grateful.” He added that he was “relieved and hopeful that the saga of the 2003 foul ball incident surrounding my family and me is finally over.”

He was given the ring at Wrigley Field by Cubs president Tom Ricketts, who said: “We hope this provides closure on an unfortunate chapter of the story that has perpetuated throughout our quest to win a long-awaited World Series. While no gesture can fully lift the public burden he has endured for more than a decade, we felt it was important Steve knows he has been and continues to be fully embraced by this organization.”

And maybe the guy can return to living a life above ground.

It was something the Cubs needed to do, even if it came nearly 14 years too late.

Of all the comments made at the time of the incident, the one I liked best was uttered by Rick Sutcliffe, a former Dodger who was with the Cubs that year.

Sutcliffe said the crowd’s reaction to Bartman (which included chants of “asshole!” and items thrown at him), clearly “crushed” the previously anonymous fan:

Said Sutcliffe: “Right after I saw what happened with the fan, I woke up the next morning and told my wife that if the Cubs asked me to throw out the first pitch in the World Series, I was going to take that fan out to the mound with me.”

That sort of instant “forgiveness” directed towards Bartman perhaps would have nipped in the bud what turned into years of infamy.

The Cubs trying to make things right comes late, but that is better than not at all.