On This Day in Chicago Cubs History: Cubs Fire Ball Girl After She Posed for Playboy

Published: Wednesday, July 22, 2026 at 6:41 am

Cubs Part Ways with Ball Girl Over Playboy Appearance

In a move that generated significant buzz in the summer of 1986, the Chicago Cubs organization made the decision to dismiss one of their ball girls, Marla Collins, following her planned appearance in Playboy magazine. Collins, a recognizable figure to many fans at Wrigley Field for several seasons, was a familiar part of the game-day atmosphere.

The situation escalated when the Cubs became aware of Collins' upcoming feature in the September 1986 issue of Playboy. The magazine spread included baseball-themed photographs, with some images depicting Collins in her Cubs uniform. A particularly notable photograph featured a well-known Cubs broadcaster pointing to a tattoo on her thigh, which the article suggested linked the photo shoot to the team.

The Cubs organization reportedly felt that the Playboy feature was at odds with the image they wished to project. Collins, however, offered a different perspective on the separation, characterizing it as a "parting of the ways." She described the organization as being comprised of "ultraconservative people" and suggested that the considerable attention surrounding the magazine feature had made her more recognizable than the club was comfortable with.

This incident quickly became one of the more peculiar off-field narratives in baseball that summer, igniting discussions about the boundaries between an employee's private life and an organization's public persona. The event has since been remembered as a unique chapter in the history of the Cubs franchise.

Looking back approximately 40 years later, this story highlights the substantial evolution of professional sports and society at large. In 1986, many organizations considered a Playboy photo shoot to be incompatible with representing a professional sports franchise. Today, athletes, broadcasters, and other team personnel possess considerably more autonomy over their personal brands, leveraging social media, endorsement deals, podcasts, and subscription-based content. While professional organizations still maintain standards for their employees, it is a pertinent question whether a situation like Collins' would be handled in the same manner in the current climate. While such an event would undoubtedly still attract considerable attention in the social media era, it is debatable whether it would be met with the same level of disapproval. Regardless of whether one agrees with the Cubs' decision at the time, Marla Collins' dismissal remains a noteworthy and unusual story in the franchise's history, reflecting a period when public image and personal expression were perceived quite differently than they are today.

BNN's Perspective: The Marla Collins incident serves as a fascinating historical marker, illustrating the dramatic shift in how personal expression and professional image are perceived in the sports world. While the Cubs' concerns about brand alignment were understandable within the context of 1986, today's media landscape offers individuals far greater latitude in managing their public personas. This evolution raises questions about the balance between organizational standards and individual autonomy, a debate that continues to shape the relationship between athletes, teams, and the public.

Tags: Chicago Cubs, Marla Collins, Playboy, ball girl, Wrigley Field, Harry Caray, 1986, professional sports, public image, personal life, media, social media, brand, dismissal, controversy

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