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Last month, Aaron Judge made New York Yankees and American League history when he hit his 62nd home run against the Texas Rangers. At the time, the expectation was that he would also be making one fan a whole lot of money.
At the time that Judge hit the home run, the expectation was that the ball would fetch at least $1 million. It turns out the actual figure could have been much higher.
According to a report from ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the man who caught the ball has turned down a $3 million offer and is putting the ball up for auction.
News: Aaron Judge's 62nd home run ball is going to auction. And after turning down a $3 million offer, the man who caught it, Cory Youmans, details for ESPN the wild night of 62 and sets straight false claims made about him on social media. Story free: https://t.co/KBFxbcJAOb
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 17, 2022
He claims that he made the move to give everybody a chance to own the ball.
It seems fair in the sense it gives anyone that is interested and has the means the opportunity to own it. As a fan, I’m curious to see what it’s worth, who buys it and what they do with it.
It’s a bold move to turn down the massive offer. Not only do you turn down a guaranteed payday, but now you also have to deal with the auction house getting their cut.
While you’d assume that whoever made that $3 million offer is ready to make that same bid in an auction, there is always the chance that the market decides the ball isn’t worth that and not only do you end up with a smaller price, but also lose a percentage of the sale.
How the decision turns out for him will be one of the biggest stories of the year in the sports memorabilia world.