A formal offer has been made for Aaron Judge’s historic home run ball.
The New York Yankees star hit his 62nd homer of the season and broke the American League record for most dingers in a single season that was held by Roger Maris since 1961. Judge did not receive the ball in return, and the fan who caught the ball admitted he didn’t know what he would do with the baseball.
In these situations, a bidding war breaks out, and the starting price is $2 million. The offer was made by president of Memory Lane Inc. JP Cohen. The owner of the sports memorabilia auction house in Tustin, Calif., told The Associated Press on Wednesday he has texted and emailed the fan, Cory Youmans. Cohen said Youmans has not yet replied.
“I feel the offer is way above fair, if he is inclined to sell it,” Cohen told the AP.
The record price for a home run ball is $3 million, paid for Mark McGwire’s record 70th from the 1998 season.
Money doesn’t appear to be the goal for Youmans as he is a vice president at Fisher Investments, which manages $197 billion worldwide, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. It will be up to Youmans if he chooses to keep the ball for sentimental value.
As for Judge, he isn’t too bothered about the ball not being in his possession and is more focused on helping the Yankees win a World Series. The New York slugger has received praise from all over the baseball world, including from Roger Maris Jr., who proclaimed him the “clean home run king.”
