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When Aaron Judge made history by hitting home run number 62 on the season, he also made a fan's dream come true. Coming into possession of a historic baseball is essentially winning the lottery, given the financial implications. Now, reports indicate that the fan has opted to put the ball up for auction, eschewing a three million dollar offer.
Obviously not taking that offer comes with a risk, but the fan clearly believes he can get more for the ball. Aaron Judge set the New York Yankees and American League record for home runs in a single season. The record was previously held by Yankees legend Roger Maris. Now, if you have over three million dollars, you too could own that piece of baseball history.
News that the ball was being put up for auction was posted to Twitter by Jeff Passan.
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Many fans were stunned that this offer was denied. While this was the ball that broke the AL home run record, it did not break the MLB record. The National League and MLB record is still held by Barry Bonds, who hit 73 home runs in 2001. While some might doubt the validity of that record, it is the one currently recognized as the best ever.
Many fans, especially New York Yankees fans, hope the ball somehow ends up with Aaron Judge. If the ball is truly important to him, he could likely afford to win this upcoming auction. Perhaps even Hal Steinbrenner, owner of the Yankees, could buy it as a gift to entice the free-agent Judge to re-sign.
Getting a ball like this is every fan's dream. Most fans would be thrilled to catch a home run ball that does not make history. The history-making home run ball is on an entirely different level. Though many fans expect that three million dollars might be the most the ball is possibly worth.
Hopefully the home run ball ends up in the hands of a fan who can appreciate it for what it is.
Aaron Judge's home run record chase was one of the biggest stories of the 2022 season
It seemed like every day in September provided another update on Judge's pursuit of history. As soon as he hit the 60 home run mark, ESPN and other networks would cut in live to every at-bat.
Aaron Judge provided one of the most compelling stories of 2022, and will try his hardest to one-up himself in 2023.
