The ball Shohei Ohtani belted into the seats in Miami to become the first player to hit 50 homers and steal 50 bases in the same season is on the market.
The as yet unidentified man who emerged from a scramble for it has consigned it to auction with bidding set to begin Friday. The opening bid at Goldin is $500,000. This one comes with a twist, however. You can buy it outright for $4.5 million between now and until the night of October 9, when one week remains in the auction. That opportunity will close if bidding reaches $3 million or more before that date.
However, an 18-year-old fan at the game, Max Matus, has filed a lawsuit against the consignor who he names as Chris Belanski, stating that Belanski snatched the prize out of his hands by physical force. He’s asking a Miami Dade County Court to halt the sale of the ball, claiming it’s rightfully his.
Ohtani 50th home run ball lawsuit
Matus’ father Greg told the Los Angeles Times last week, “I think he was disappointed that he had a ball in his hands and some guy took it away from him. Obviously after the fact, everybody’s talking about hey the ball’s worth millions of dollars or whatever they’re saying. But in the moment I think he was just a kid trying to catch a ball in the outfield at the game.”
Miami sports talk host Andy Slater reported that the Dodgers took the unusual step of making a cash offer for the ball. Typically, they offer only game-used gear, autographs and other memorabilia for important baseballs caught by fans.
SLATER SCOOP: LA Dodgers reps offered $300,000 to the fan who ended up with Shohei Ohtani’s 50th HR ball, multiple sources tell me.
The discussion took place after security escorted the fan away from the outfield area.
The Dodgers did not comment when asked.
— Andy Slater (@AndySlater) September 20, 2024
Ohtani had a day for the ages on September 19. He went 6-for-6 against the woeful Marlins with three home runs and drove in ten runs while stealing two bases. The milestone homer came off Miami’s Mike Baumann in the 7th inning of the Dodgers’ 20-4 romp.
The auction house, which was acquired by eBay earlier this year, says the ball “exhibits excellent game use, with black scuffing and surface abrasions present throughout the white leather surface.”
To ensure authenticity, the baseballs used before a potentially historic milestone are specially marked, as was the case with the one Ohtani sent to a club type seating area directly behind the outfield fence.
The person who scooped up the ball, now identified in the court papers as Belanski, was able to get a hologram applied by Major League Baseball authenticators. Video of the ball sailing into the stands and the fight for it that followed shows a man emerging with it and later being escorted below the stands by stadium and team security. The MLB authentication has been placed below the Rawlings logo.
Goldin says the consignor contacted the company the following day, asking them to sell it for him.
“Ohtani is truly one-of-a-kind, and the 50-50 record may be his crowning achievement,” Goldin Founder Ken Goldin remarked. “This is a piece of baseball history that fans and historians around the world will remember for decades to come.”
In the aftermath of the homer, estimates on its potential value varied quite a bit with most falling in the $300,000-$600,000 range but Goldin believes it will find a buyer above that range. Ohtani’s global appeal could certainly bring additional buyers with deep pockets into the mix.
The record price for any home run ball remains the $3 million paid in 1999 for Mark McGwire’s 70th home run ball. In 2022, Goldin sold Aaron Judge’s 62nd home run ball for $1.5 million. That ball, which broke Roger Maris’ American League single season record, had been caught by Texas Rangers fan Cory Youmans, who turned down a higher offer to bring the ball to market.
The 50-50 season was a first, but Ohtani has already added to those totals. Coming into Wednesday night’s game against the San Diego Padres, he had 53 homers and 55 steals with five games remaining on the Dodgers’ regular season schedule.
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