A baseball fan became a millionaire just by catching Shohei Ohtani's 50th home run last Thursday in Miami, during a game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Marlins.
A video shared on the Instagram account of user Only in Dade shows how the man triumphantly raises his hand with the ball after diving into the stands at LoanDepot Park along with others to try to catch it.
According to the TMZ portal, after some negotiations, the Dodgers did not recover the ball, and the lucky person ended up keeping it.
There are differences regarding its possible value.
David Kohler, president of the collectible sports merchandise store SCP Auctions, told TMZ Sports that the Ohtani ball would likely sell for more than $300,000 at auction.
However, it could be worth much more.
CBS Sports recalled that the ball from Aaron Judge's 62nd home run was sold for 1.5 million dollars in 2022, and the ball from Mark McGwire's 70th home run was sold for three million.
"In the same way, the 50-50 ball is an important piece of history. Ohtani is a global icon, and although the 50-50 ball may not reach the price of McGwire, not even that of Judge, it is worth a fortune," the article notes.
Only in Dade does it speak of a man, but of two friends who caught the ball that hit against the left field wall.
"They were immediately escorted by the Marlins and MLB staff, where the ball was authenticated by Major League Baseball and valued at least at 2 million dollars. They received offers from the Dodgers, Ohtani, and several others within minutes, but politely declined to ensure they would get the best deal," the report states.
Thursday's meeting was historic for Shohei Ohtani, who inaugurated the 50-50 club (50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season) in MLB.
The Japanese player hit his 49th, 50th, and 51st home runs of the season and stole his 50th and 51st bases. In total, he had six hits, two doubles, scored four runs, drove in another ten, and stole two bases.
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