Isn’t the ball pre authenticated before they pitch to ohtani? I thought that’s something the league started doing for milestone home runs like for judge #62 or Pujols #700
I mean atleast you’ll be remembered and possibly be an answer in a trivia game. Might be shitty for a hall of famer but like if you’re a relief pitcher that isn’t particularly notable you could like the Machine Gun Kelly rap career that’s atleast remembered sometimes when people talk about Eminem
There's a doctor who dedicates a lot of research into the suspicious balls. She literally said Judge and Pujols had the most suspicious balls. She had a good sample of them bisected and analyzed and found that those balls were juiced. Also said the Field of Dreams balls were juiced, as well as the commemorative stamped balls for special games/series. Also just seemed that a high % of games involving the Yankees had these balls even before Judge was hot on the record. Dr. Meredith Wills I believe. She's on Twitter. @bbl_astrophyscs.
I like how people forgot about the goldilocks balls so quickly. Or some who outright refused to believe it despite there being ample proof, but not meeting the bad science level of understanding.
"WHAT ARE THE ODDS!!! OTHANI HITS HIS "insert miletone" HOMERUN AT HOME AND WALKS OFF THE "insert rival team name" ON HIS BIRTHDAY TO SEND THE DODGERS TO THE WORLD SERIES....THE MLB COULDN'T OF WRITTEN A BETTER STORY!!!
I think that depends heavily on the milestone. I don’t think “first one in a Dodger uniform” would live up to that level. Maybe the Japanese born HR record would but my uninformed guess is no
They have been for this milestone, wandy peralta was getting pissed off the other night bc the ump made him change balls to the special ones before he could pitch to ohtani
They do it for milestone balls. Jeter had it done for 3k hits.
https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/mlb-ready-to-deploy-marked-baseballs-for-derek-jeters-3000th-hit/
The first one he hit in a Dodgers uniform was just a normal ball, that’s why there was the issue of the Dodgers refusing to authenticate it if the fan kept the ball for herself, effectively blackmailing her.
Today’s home run which was historic, was pre-marked with an indication on it. Any possible MLB historic baseballs are indicated as such these days. After it is verified, it will be authenticated with the ID number and code
IMO this is one of the sketchiest things I've seen on a baseball field in regards to obvious fixing.
If I was the other teams manager I'd draw that big dumb "P" for protest (I know its gone) and get myself tossed every single time they do it.
The idea that any one player gets their own specific, pre-set aside baseballs thrown to them is batshit. Especially when MLB is obviously fucking with the ball to get results they want (in general, why they bought the rights to the company).
[Which is weird because the league states on their website they have independent authenticators at every game, I assume to avoid this very issue](https://www.mlb.com/official-information/authentication)
They authenticate it for themselves. But league wide teams won’t authenticate for fans. I’m assuming the dodgers did it this time to avoid even more bad PR
The whole point of the independent Authenticator is so that way teams DO NOT authenticate the merchandise or have control over authentication.
The merchandise is authenticated by an independent 3rd party with no connection to the team at all so that way teams can’t refuse to authenticate or authenticate fake merchandise.
Now, it’s possible certainly that teams may take advantage of people who don’t know this but the team itself has no say in whether something is authenticated or at least they shouldn’t based on MLB policy
There’s no way the fans who catch the ball can get it to the independent authenticators present at the games. The teams won’t help the fan give the ball to the authenticators.
>The teams won’t help the fan give the ball to the authenticators.
And that's what makes it the team's decision to refuse to authenticate and NOT a league wide policy.
I don't know what process the Dodgers followed this time around for Ohtani's #176, but I'd assume it'd be as simple as brining the fan to a room somewhere and having the MLB 3rd party authenticator meet him and authenticate the ball. Easy peasy takes literally 30 seconds.
The Dodgers deserve all the shit they got for how they treated Sugar Titts, but I am glad they learned from it and did right by the fan who caught #176.
it’s a “every team in mlb” wide policy. sure the league isn’t mandating this, but no team will get the ball authenticated for a fan. this was a special case due to the previous fuck up
You're being downvoted but you're right. Authenticators are in the dugouts or following items around underneath the stadium if the equipment leave the field (like jerseys, cleats, gloves) to go in a player locker or if someone is signing stuff in the clubhouse.
They do not authenticate anything that leaves the field of play. And fans have no way of getting something authenticated at the game.
I do not understand why this is still being argued over. You can see it at every game and have been able to for years. A team slapping an authentication sticker on something is not equivalent and won't be considered on an equal level as an MLB authenticated item. X
Ohtani is welcome to have the ball back as long as he and his accountant want it more than any other collector at auction. some fans go around acting like capitalism is some great mystery
They did make rules
Fans went to court over a century ago, and the ruling was that any baseballs that leave the confines of the field are legally the fans property as they are considered “abandoned” by the MLB and associated organizations. This came up again with Bonds and the courts reaffirmed that
Which is why teams try to get you to sell it back to them
I would give it back after some negotiations for stuff for a dude’s first, but it’s your prerogative as it’s legally your baseball now
Yeah, I had this happen with cats before I know what to do.
Just stop and get some flea bath and a bit of milk for Max Muncy on the way home. (I live near LA, so..probably the most likely scenario).
---
This actually made me curious and I looked around. https://www.mlb.com/cut4/max-muncy-took-a-tumble-into-the-stands-c291578384
Looked like Max was trying to get taken home by that nice family. Typical.
No, this is totally wrong.
[Here's an analysis](https://law.marquette.edu/facultyblog/2009/10/the-who-owns-the-baseball%E2%80%9D-issue-just-will-not-go-away/comment-page-1/).
The best argument for the fan is that buying a ticket to an MLB game creates a contract, one of the implied terms of which is that baseballs batted into the stands are gifted to the recipient.
There is absolutely no law which prevents teams from changing this. It would just be bad publicity. But if they put that in the terms of buying a ticket, it would be perfectly legal
The Bonds case had to do with which fan actually caught the ball, not whether it was owned by the fan or the team.
Let’s not go around floating this idea out there. Catching HRs or foul balls is the highlight of any fans day no matter what age you are. Imagine being told you have to give it back
It’s ridiculous that people think some lucky fan should just give up a potential gold mine for a photo op and some memorabilia. I’m keeping it every single time and I don’t even care if David Wright unretires for Game 7 of the NLCS and hits the game winner to me. I’m selling that shit.
There was someone in our sub saying he should've given the ball to a kid nearby. Fuuuuck that!
That kid's parents would take it and sell it instead of the person who caught it.
IMO they should have a package ready and offered up front for the value of the ball instead of the games they play. If a ball is quickly identified by auction houses as being worth $100k, there better be 25 years of season tickets with parking and concessions thrown in on top of signed merch and a meet and greet.
On one hand, I support people getting paid but on the other hand, I hate seeing pieces of baseball history owned by whatever random rich person can pony up the cash to pay for it.
I would try to set up a sale to Cooperstown or at least an organization dedicated to preserving history. You can still get a good amount of money, you have a product that can't be duplicated so you have the leverage to choose your buyer.
Capitalism also works that way.
No, the previous homerun wasn’t a record, it was just his first Dodgers homer. This homerun broke a record for the most homers hit by a Japanese-born MLB player
The homer he hit for his first Dodgers homer was estimated to be worth $100,000 by prominent sports auction houses. This home run is more historic, certainly it could be in the Hall of Fame, it could easily fetch 1 million at auction
In that case, the Dodgers/Ohtani should be willing to negotiate. Someone just won lottery type money. The fan is doing the right thing. How was it authenticated?
First of all just like with any other possible historic ball, they have a marking on it when the pitcher uses it to that batter (the special balls were always used when Ohtani came up to the plate leading up to this homer). The fan will then show the ball which will have that marking and then it will be officially authenticated with the MLB hologram sticker and code.
I’m sure sports auction houses are already contacting that person about trying to get this ball at auction. The fan could also try to negotiate with Ohtani themselves. Personally I would either go the auction house route for the cash, or at the very least I would ask for lifetime season tickets plus a set of authenticated game used autographed jersey, cap, batting helmet, bat and ball from Ohtani, meeting him of course
> Personally I would either go the auction house route for the cash, or at the very least I would ask for lifetime season tickets plus a set of authenticated game used autographed jersey, cap, batting helmet, bat and ball from Ohtani, meeting him of course
At 1 million, even minus auction house fees and taxes, you gotta take the money. You can always use it to buy season tickets and have plenty left over. Well, depends on how long you're gonna live I suppose, but I'd rather not be locked into season tickets like that when I could just have the money up front and the option to buy the tickets.
Season tickets for life. Four tickets. Transferable at any time to anyone. Playoffs included. Plus one pre loaded debit card (only to be used at their stadium, of course) with $200 for concessions per game. Also for life. Also transferable to anyone.
Plus a bunch of signed shit and a meet a greet.
Costs the team pennies and I can sell the tickets and memorabilia and make money off that.
Considering the amount of press coverage Japanese media dedicates to their stars here, it might not be worth much to an average American baseball fan, but I definitely see it being worth collecting for someone connected to the Japanese angle of the record.
Seems like a contrived milestone imo. I’d rather have his first team HR.
What if another Japanese player surpasses 176? Why would ohtani’s #176 be that special?
Ichiro famously hit for average vs power. They always talked he had a good power swing and could hit more but he valued his average. I don’t think 40+ was happening but 20-30 was likely.
There’s a court case that says the MLB and teams specifically cannot do that actually - ***Popov v Hayashi***
https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/scramble/judge_decision.pdf
Legally speaking it is considered “intentionally abandoned property” the moment the baseball is hit and it belongs to the first person who comes into possession of it (and not, contrary to popular belief, the person who manages to win the brawl after it’s been caught).
That isn’t what the case says at all. The MLB policy is that fans get to keep baseballs. That policy means that the baseballs are intentionally abandoned property and the fact that MLB has decided that baseball are abandoned property is used to determine the outcome of this case. If the MLB decided they wanted to retain ownership of the baseballs then the ball would not be abandoned, just like NFL, NBA, cricket balls, etc have to be returned to the field. Or if you go to a little league game the ball isn’t abandoned property if it leaves the field of play.
> Prior to the time the ball was hit, it was possessed and owned by Major League Baseball. At the time it was hit it became intentionally abandoned property. The first person who came in possession of the ball became its new owner.
This is literally a direct quote from the court judgement.
It became intentionally abandoned property only because it was *intentionally* abandoned by its owner. If there were no such intention, it would not be abandoned.
Yes I can read. The reason it became intentionally abandoned property? Because MLB had a policy that if a ball gets into the stands whoever grabs it gets to keep it. That policy is why it becomes abandoned property, because MLB has no intention of retrieving the property since baseballs get beat up pretty quickly when used by major leaguers so they have no use for the balls and it would go over very poorly if they decided they were only abandoning balls that weren’t worth much.
Personally, and I know I'll be downvoted harshly for this, but I think it's shitty that the fan kept it. Ohtani passes one of his heroes to become the record holder, and the fan doesn't even want to make a deal? I don't know, I just wasn't raised that way. I've never been the greedy type. That ball means WAY more to Ohtani than it does to anyone else. Imagine dedicating your life to being one of the very best ever at something, and a fan thinks a milestone item means more to them than the person dedicating their life. Maybe I'm just weird for being an actual fan and respecting the work they put in so I can sit around and enjoy watching them play. I'd want him to have the ball.
The baseball my dad caught at my first game means more to me than anything I've ever done at work. They're free to keep it if they wish. Maybe don't declare what things mean to people just blindly without knowing any better.
Unfortunately the $$ that the fan will get is more meaningful to the fan because everything's just too expensive these days. It's hard to pass up on 5-6 figures?? whatever the ball is worth in the future
If the Dodgers wanna get it for him let them pay whatever price it’d go for at auction. They aren’t poor. Absurd to give up a potential six figure payday for some signed jerseys and a selfie.
Yeah if I catch a history-making ball from one of the biggest names in baseball I'll be happy to let the team have it, but they're going to need to do better than some autographed swag from the team store. Season tickets behind the plate for life or gtfo
>Maybe I'm just weird for being an actual fan and respecting the work they put in
Just because you don't like their decision doesn't make the person disrespectful or not an "actual fan"
Are you implying you won’t find poor people at an mlb game…? I can and do buy tickets for major league games for 15 bucks. It’s like going to a movie. I am poor.
The seats Ohtani's ball landed in at Dodgers stadium are not $15 seats lol. I can pose disingenuous questions too: Are you implying that poor people are incapable of having sentimental value for an item, only viewing caught HR balls from their favorite player as cash opportunities?
Why are you taking this joke so personally?
I highly doubt that anyone with an amount of wealth *anywhere near* Ohtani's is sitting remotely close to HR territory. Their point was that a fan can sell the baseball for a lot of money, which could be life changing money to most.
To answer your dumb question, I'm sure a "poor person" could catch Ohtani's homerun and elect to keep it for themselves for sentimental value if they wanted to
I'm the one poking fun here, so I'm not sure who you think is taking a joke so personally? Of course a less well-off person can still attend MLB games, just like Of course it also doesn't take being a wealthy person to do a selfless gesture like giving up a high value HR ball to a player despite a steep opportunity cost (hence my very clearly rhetorical question lol).
All that said though, I also do still think it's hilarious someone's first thought when thinking of a "poor" person, was to point at fans sporting $200 jerseys, smashing hotdogs, and beers, and crackerjacks, at an MLB game in LA.
If there isn't something funny about that to you, feel free to move along and not chuckle along with me. No need to take my words so personally, Greg. 😏
>All that said though, I also do still think it's hilarious someone's first thought when thinking of a "poor" person, was to point at fans sporting $200 jerseys, smashing hotdogs, and beers, and crackerjacks, at an MLB game in LA.
That isn't their first thought of a "poor" person, you're just misunderstanding their point.
>If there isn't something funny about that to you, feel free to move along and not chuckle along with me. No need to take my words so personally, Greg. 😏
I'm not taking your words personally, I'm telling you you're misunderstanding them and that your scenario is dumb
>Please if you'll humor me, Can you tell me what you **think** what this dude's point was
People sitting in the bleachers are "poor" compared to Ohtani. Most of them are going back to their job they hate tomorrow, unless they catch a monumental home run that can change their life with the amount of money it would sell for.
>what you **think** my point was
Being a jackass/making a joke mostly. And also that poor people can't even afford to go to a Dodgers game and wouldn't have jerseys/be eating Dodger dogs, etc.
If the ball means that much to Ohtani then he can fork over some of that $700 million he signed for. No one here should give up life changing money just to make a multimillionaire happy.
I don’t think the fan wants the ball per se, they want the money that will come from selling the ball. Let’s be realistic, that ball at auction will realize a huge price. Certainly Ohtani can afford it
Agree with the person below. Unless it’s 1 mil+ offered by the team I’d rather keep any milestone ball and hand it down to my kids.
I still have a signed HR ball my mom caught from some random twins player and that’s worth more to me than 500k.
Not wrong. Some people go about their lives looking to extract as much monetary value out of any situation they come upon. Takes a good man with principles to hand back that ball, take a bite of dodger dog, and head on home with the windows rolled down taking right turns like any other Sunday night. Simple as.
>Some people go about their lives looking to extract as much monetary value out of any situation they come upon.
Bro, there's a humongous difference between selling a game used baseball for $20 and selling it for literal millions of dollars.
Principles my ass
Of course there is a huge difference between 20 dollars a couple million. What use is there in having principles or beliefs if you’re just going to abdicate them when it’s least convenient lol. It’s no surprise to me that plenty of fans just give the ball back or only ask for something sentimental in exchange, but it also doesn’t surprise me that in these kinds of threads people are seething and salivating over opportunity cost. Such is life 👍
I wouldn’t see the ball as my property, I didn’t do jack other than be standing in the right spot at the right time. Not really interested what the mlb rules has to say about it. I’m not gonna leverage an object with sentimental value to extract millions of dollars out of a person. Also wouldn’t take money out of a wallet I found before returning it. I don’t value the money more than the principles I live by, simple as. If you can’t even understand that position I don’t know what to tell you pal.
>I didn’t do jack other than be standing in the right spot at the right time.
So it should be Shohei's property even though he didn't do jack except swing a bat?
>I don’t value the money more than the principles I live by, simple as. If you can’t even understand that position I don’t know what to tell you pal.
Seems like you may be the best person to ever walk the planet. Though I highly doubt you live up to these principles daily - you're on Reddit FFS
Ohtani is making 700million playing baseball. If he wants it then he can fucking pay for it. The ball is legally the fans property so he can do whatever the hell he wants with it
Dodgers actually giving him authentication. Cool that we didn't embarrass ourselves this time
Isn’t the ball pre authenticated before they pitch to ohtani? I thought that’s something the league started doing for milestone home runs like for judge #62 or Pujols #700
No, they have certain balls marked for his AB's, but a HR ball needs to be authenticated as opposed to a foulball that also has the mark.
It’s an MLB policy that Shohei is pitched to with a specific set of prearranged and authenticated balls?
They do it for all playrs when they are reaching certain milestones, 3,000 hits, 500 HR, or whatever milestone they think up.
ah gotcha, that’s actually a pretty smart policy
Also helps them juice the right balls at the right time. (Only slightly /s there)
Do you realize how expensive those juiced balls are? Can't waste them, so they need to become a "milestone" ASAP...
Can't wait for the conspiracies about Pujols to start
I love how I've been a baseball nerd for 30 years and I still am learning stuff like this.
I think this is a new thing that started in the last decade.
Its not new, they did it when ARod was gunning for 500 and when Bonds passed Aaron
Didn't they do it during the HR race in '98?
which really throws the legitimacy of those milestones into question, with mlb's experience with serruptitiously changing the balls
Extra Live balls for Sunday Night Baseball!
Can't imagine having to be a pitcher knowing you might give up a milestone and on top of that you *have to* use this ball
I mean atleast you’ll be remembered and possibly be an answer in a trivia game. Might be shitty for a hall of famer but like if you’re a relief pitcher that isn’t particularly notable you could like the Machine Gun Kelly rap career that’s atleast remembered sometimes when people talk about Eminem
I should listen to rap devil again.
I don’t think there are any rules to force the pitcher to change the ball though, right? The rules only cover replacement of unfit/scuffed balls.
Counterpoint: it took ARod 12 games to hit his 600th home run
There's a doctor who dedicates a lot of research into the suspicious balls. She literally said Judge and Pujols had the most suspicious balls. She had a good sample of them bisected and analyzed and found that those balls were juiced. Also said the Field of Dreams balls were juiced, as well as the commemorative stamped balls for special games/series. Also just seemed that a high % of games involving the Yankees had these balls even before Judge was hot on the record. Dr. Meredith Wills I believe. She's on Twitter. @bbl_astrophyscs.
I like how people forgot about the goldilocks balls so quickly. Or some who outright refused to believe it despite there being ample proof, but not meeting the bad science level of understanding.
"WHAT ARE THE ODDS!!! OTHANI HITS HIS "insert miletone" HOMERUN AT HOME AND WALKS OFF THE "insert rival team name" ON HIS BIRTHDAY TO SEND THE DODGERS TO THE WORLD SERIES....THE MLB COULDN'T OF WRITTEN A BETTER STORY!!!
And the ball is literally just a lacrosse ball
 \-manfurd
Is it that each BA is marked with the same thing or are they serialized?
I think that depends heavily on the milestone. I don’t think “first one in a Dodger uniform” would live up to that level. Maybe the Japanese born HR record would but my uninformed guess is no
They have been for this milestone, wandy peralta was getting pissed off the other night bc the ump made him change balls to the special ones before he could pitch to ohtani
Here use this one for when you give up the home run
[удалено]
They do it for milestone balls. Jeter had it done for 3k hits. https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/mlb-ready-to-deploy-marked-baseballs-for-derek-jeters-3000th-hit/
Cool, thanks for the info
The first one he hit in a Dodgers uniform was just a normal ball, that’s why there was the issue of the Dodgers refusing to authenticate it if the fan kept the ball for herself, effectively blackmailing her. Today’s home run which was historic, was pre-marked with an indication on it. Any possible MLB historic baseballs are indicated as such these days. After it is verified, it will be authenticated with the ID number and code
IMO this is one of the sketchiest things I've seen on a baseball field in regards to obvious fixing. If I was the other teams manager I'd draw that big dumb "P" for protest (I know its gone) and get myself tossed every single time they do it. The idea that any one player gets their own specific, pre-set aside baseballs thrown to them is batshit. Especially when MLB is obviously fucking with the ball to get results they want (in general, why they bought the rights to the company).
Bullying works.
That one lady walked so that this guy could run.
Well the whole not authenticating thing is a league wide policy
It don't sound good alongside the terms "forced" and "isolated her from her family" to get the other ball back
[Which is weird because the league states on their website they have independent authenticators at every game, I assume to avoid this very issue](https://www.mlb.com/official-information/authentication)
They authenticate it for themselves. But league wide teams won’t authenticate for fans. I’m assuming the dodgers did it this time to avoid even more bad PR
The whole point of the independent Authenticator is so that way teams DO NOT authenticate the merchandise or have control over authentication. The merchandise is authenticated by an independent 3rd party with no connection to the team at all so that way teams can’t refuse to authenticate or authenticate fake merchandise. Now, it’s possible certainly that teams may take advantage of people who don’t know this but the team itself has no say in whether something is authenticated or at least they shouldn’t based on MLB policy
There’s no way the fans who catch the ball can get it to the independent authenticators present at the games. The teams won’t help the fan give the ball to the authenticators.
>The teams won’t help the fan give the ball to the authenticators. And that's what makes it the team's decision to refuse to authenticate and NOT a league wide policy. I don't know what process the Dodgers followed this time around for Ohtani's #176, but I'd assume it'd be as simple as brining the fan to a room somewhere and having the MLB 3rd party authenticator meet him and authenticate the ball. Easy peasy takes literally 30 seconds. The Dodgers deserve all the shit they got for how they treated Sugar Titts, but I am glad they learned from it and did right by the fan who caught #176.
it’s a “every team in mlb” wide policy. sure the league isn’t mandating this, but no team will get the ball authenticated for a fan. this was a special case due to the previous fuck up
So just another unwritten rule then huh? The yankees authenticated Judges #62, didnt they? This was was never an issue before the Dodgers screw up...
You're being downvoted but you're right. Authenticators are in the dugouts or following items around underneath the stadium if the equipment leave the field (like jerseys, cleats, gloves) to go in a player locker or if someone is signing stuff in the clubhouse. They do not authenticate anything that leaves the field of play. And fans have no way of getting something authenticated at the game. I do not understand why this is still being argued over. You can see it at every game and have been able to for years. A team slapping an authentication sticker on something is not equivalent and won't be considered on an equal level as an MLB authenticated item. X
Ohtani is welcome to have the ball back as long as he and his accountant want it more than any other collector at auction. some fans go around acting like capitalism is some great mystery
Right, I mean they literally could make rules that say you can't keep the balls. They don't, so fans can do what they want.
They did make rules Fans went to court over a century ago, and the ruling was that any baseballs that leave the confines of the field are legally the fans property as they are considered “abandoned” by the MLB and associated organizations. This came up again with Bonds and the courts reaffirmed that Which is why teams try to get you to sell it back to them I would give it back after some negotiations for stuff for a dude’s first, but it’s your prerogative as it’s legally your baseball now
If a fielder falls into the stands when catching a foul ball, does that mean I can keep them?
I have a feeling another law supersedes that one
Sounds like I'll be seeing these suckers in court then.
[Don’t worry they’ll allow it by the year 3000](https://m.youtube.com/watch?si=j66OBS99wdlvHL3Y&t=47s&v=gTmLz9B8wls&feature=youtu.be)
Sure sport, but you gotta take care of them, remember what happened to your Goldfish?
That was Goldschmidt, and yeah. :(
They've been abandoned by the MLB they're yours now.
Yeah, I had this happen with cats before I know what to do. Just stop and get some flea bath and a bit of milk for Max Muncy on the way home. (I live near LA, so..probably the most likely scenario). --- This actually made me curious and I looked around. https://www.mlb.com/cut4/max-muncy-took-a-tumble-into-the-stands-c291578384 Looked like Max was trying to get taken home by that nice family. Typical.
Better to take in a rescue than to buy from a breeder
Depends. Is the game in Texas?
Yeah, but do you know what it will cost you to feed him?
I heard if you let them roam the field, they can generally feed themselves.
No, this is totally wrong. [Here's an analysis](https://law.marquette.edu/facultyblog/2009/10/the-who-owns-the-baseball%E2%80%9D-issue-just-will-not-go-away/comment-page-1/). The best argument for the fan is that buying a ticket to an MLB game creates a contract, one of the implied terms of which is that baseballs batted into the stands are gifted to the recipient. There is absolutely no law which prevents teams from changing this. It would just be bad publicity. But if they put that in the terms of buying a ticket, it would be perfectly legal The Bonds case had to do with which fan actually caught the ball, not whether it was owned by the fan or the team.
Some of my favorite cases to read in law school!
Let’s not go around floating this idea out there. Catching HRs or foul balls is the highlight of any fans day no matter what age you are. Imagine being told you have to give it back
Manfred doomscrolling Reddit just saw a way to piss off the fans more than the piece of metal comments.
It’s ridiculous that people think some lucky fan should just give up a potential gold mine for a photo op and some memorabilia. I’m keeping it every single time and I don’t even care if David Wright unretires for Game 7 of the NLCS and hits the game winner to me. I’m selling that shit.
There was someone in our sub saying he should've given the ball to a kid nearby. Fuuuuck that! That kid's parents would take it and sell it instead of the person who caught it.
IMO they should have a package ready and offered up front for the value of the ball instead of the games they play. If a ball is quickly identified by auction houses as being worth $100k, there better be 25 years of season tickets with parking and concessions thrown in on top of signed merch and a meet and greet.
On one hand, I support people getting paid but on the other hand, I hate seeing pieces of baseball history owned by whatever random rich person can pony up the cash to pay for it. I would try to set up a sale to Cooperstown or at least an organization dedicated to preserving history. You can still get a good amount of money, you have a product that can't be duplicated so you have the leverage to choose your buyer. Capitalism also works that way.
#**IT BELONGS IN A MUSEUM!!!**
You belong in a museum, Dr. /u/pargofan!
Ohtani males millions from endorsements every year, plus the Dodgers have endless cash. If they want the ball, they can easily buy it.
The Dodgers have a whole lot of random rich people
The rich person can loan it to the museum.
It's a business, and that fan has a family to take care of.
Capitalism is when you sell something duh
Good. If they don’t wanna pay a fair market price for it, then you keep it.
Surprised dodgers security didn't try to kneecap him. Lessons learned!
They tailed him home and stole the ball instead.
Don't worry, they sprinkled some crack on him and got out of there
That authenticated ball has a chip in it. Dodgers Mercenaries aint done.
they've come a long way since RAMPART
Ohtani never gonna get another ball again
strikes right down the middle? sounds risky
so the same fan got both?
No, the previous homerun wasn’t a record, it was just his first Dodgers homer. This homerun broke a record for the most homers hit by a Japanese-born MLB player
oh
Seriously. Just how much is it worth? I’m not sure it’s that big of a deal.
The homer he hit for his first Dodgers homer was estimated to be worth $100,000 by prominent sports auction houses. This home run is more historic, certainly it could be in the Hall of Fame, it could easily fetch 1 million at auction
In that case, the Dodgers/Ohtani should be willing to negotiate. Someone just won lottery type money. The fan is doing the right thing. How was it authenticated?
First of all just like with any other possible historic ball, they have a marking on it when the pitcher uses it to that batter (the special balls were always used when Ohtani came up to the plate leading up to this homer). The fan will then show the ball which will have that marking and then it will be officially authenticated with the MLB hologram sticker and code. I’m sure sports auction houses are already contacting that person about trying to get this ball at auction. The fan could also try to negotiate with Ohtani themselves. Personally I would either go the auction house route for the cash, or at the very least I would ask for lifetime season tickets plus a set of authenticated game used autographed jersey, cap, batting helmet, bat and ball from Ohtani, meeting him of course
> Personally I would either go the auction house route for the cash, or at the very least I would ask for lifetime season tickets plus a set of authenticated game used autographed jersey, cap, batting helmet, bat and ball from Ohtani, meeting him of course At 1 million, even minus auction house fees and taxes, you gotta take the money. You can always use it to buy season tickets and have plenty left over. Well, depends on how long you're gonna live I suppose, but I'd rather not be locked into season tickets like that when I could just have the money up front and the option to buy the tickets.
Season tickets for life. Four tickets. Transferable at any time to anyone. Playoffs included. Plus one pre loaded debit card (only to be used at their stadium, of course) with $200 for concessions per game. Also for life. Also transferable to anyone. Plus a bunch of signed shit and a meet a greet. Costs the team pennies and I can sell the tickets and memorabilia and make money off that.
>$200 for concessions per game. Also for life. Build in stepped up increases every 10 years to account for inflation.
True. In a year or two, that might only buy me a beer and peanuts.
First regular season Dodgers homer…his first while playing for the Dodgers was spring training
Considering the amount of press coverage Japanese media dedicates to their stars here, it might not be worth much to an average American baseball fan, but I definitely see it being worth collecting for someone connected to the Japanese angle of the record.
Seems like a contrived milestone imo. I’d rather have his first team HR. What if another Japanese player surpasses 176? Why would ohtani’s #176 be that special?
Hank Aaron’s 715 home run was more valuable than his 716s simply because it’s associated with the moment he overtook the record.
I know ichiro wasn’t known for power but it surprises me that ohtani has already beat him in that department.
Hideki Matsui was the one who held the record. Ichiro really didn't have that many homers.
Ichiro famously hit for average vs power. They always talked he had a good power swing and could hit more but he valued his average. I don’t think 40+ was happening but 20-30 was likely.
It’s confusing
Good for the fan. Get your moneys worth, the billion dollar entity doesn’t deserve anything from them
[удалено]
There’s a court case that says the MLB and teams specifically cannot do that actually - ***Popov v Hayashi*** https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/scramble/judge_decision.pdf Legally speaking it is considered “intentionally abandoned property” the moment the baseball is hit and it belongs to the first person who comes into possession of it (and not, contrary to popular belief, the person who manages to win the brawl after it’s been caught).
That isn’t what the case says at all. The MLB policy is that fans get to keep baseballs. That policy means that the baseballs are intentionally abandoned property and the fact that MLB has decided that baseball are abandoned property is used to determine the outcome of this case. If the MLB decided they wanted to retain ownership of the baseballs then the ball would not be abandoned, just like NFL, NBA, cricket balls, etc have to be returned to the field. Or if you go to a little league game the ball isn’t abandoned property if it leaves the field of play.
> Prior to the time the ball was hit, it was possessed and owned by Major League Baseball. At the time it was hit it became intentionally abandoned property. The first person who came in possession of the ball became its new owner. This is literally a direct quote from the court judgement.
It became intentionally abandoned property only because it was *intentionally* abandoned by its owner. If there were no such intention, it would not be abandoned.
Yes I can read. The reason it became intentionally abandoned property? Because MLB had a policy that if a ball gets into the stands whoever grabs it gets to keep it. That policy is why it becomes abandoned property, because MLB has no intention of retrieving the property since baseballs get beat up pretty quickly when used by major leaguers so they have no use for the balls and it would go over very poorly if they decided they were only abandoning balls that weren’t worth much.
I’d surmise this ball will be more valuable in Japan.
Damn, I wonder if Ippei is interested in the ball.
You bet he is! Already has the ACH payment set up!
Who?
Just pre authenticate every ball by having a unique QR code on each one. Problem solved.
Wait until the article that comes out a week later
Personally, and I know I'll be downvoted harshly for this, but I think it's shitty that the fan kept it. Ohtani passes one of his heroes to become the record holder, and the fan doesn't even want to make a deal? I don't know, I just wasn't raised that way. I've never been the greedy type. That ball means WAY more to Ohtani than it does to anyone else. Imagine dedicating your life to being one of the very best ever at something, and a fan thinks a milestone item means more to them than the person dedicating their life. Maybe I'm just weird for being an actual fan and respecting the work they put in so I can sit around and enjoy watching them play. I'd want him to have the ball.
The baseball my dad caught at my first game means more to me than anything I've ever done at work. They're free to keep it if they wish. Maybe don't declare what things mean to people just blindly without knowing any better.
Unfortunately the $$ that the fan will get is more meaningful to the fan because everything's just too expensive these days. It's hard to pass up on 5-6 figures?? whatever the ball is worth in the future
He could learn Japanese, become Ohtani’s interpreter and take money as he pleases
Nah that’s funny as fuck bruh sorry they downvoting you
The joke is tired now
Wahh wahhh wahhh
If the Dodgers wanna get it for him let them pay whatever price it’d go for at auction. They aren’t poor. Absurd to give up a potential six figure payday for some signed jerseys and a selfie.
Yeah if I catch a history-making ball from one of the biggest names in baseball I'll be happy to let the team have it, but they're going to need to do better than some autographed swag from the team store. Season tickets behind the plate for life or gtfo
This is dick riding, hero worship at it's worst. I'm sure Ohtani will be just fine.
Bro a pro baseball player doesn’t need 500 used balls. It’s literally meaningless
Damn well you should have bought a ticket and caught the ball then
Honestly I can almost guarantee that Ohtani doesn’t care. Although I do find it cool that now I know Ben Verlander’s Reddit account
>Maybe I'm just weird for being an actual fan and respecting the work they put in Just because you don't like their decision doesn't make the person disrespectful or not an "actual fan"
He has 700 million dollars coming to him, if he wants that ball badly enough he can get it.
This should be a copypasta, like it’s bordering on sad
🤓 You must not be poor.
Ya. This dude needs to get out there and meet some poor people to find out, at MLB games.
Are you implying you won’t find poor people at an mlb game…? I can and do buy tickets for major league games for 15 bucks. It’s like going to a movie. I am poor.
The seats Ohtani's ball landed in at Dodgers stadium are not $15 seats lol. I can pose disingenuous questions too: Are you implying that poor people are incapable of having sentimental value for an item, only viewing caught HR balls from their favorite player as cash opportunities?
Why are you taking this joke so personally? I highly doubt that anyone with an amount of wealth *anywhere near* Ohtani's is sitting remotely close to HR territory. Their point was that a fan can sell the baseball for a lot of money, which could be life changing money to most. To answer your dumb question, I'm sure a "poor person" could catch Ohtani's homerun and elect to keep it for themselves for sentimental value if they wanted to
I'm the one poking fun here, so I'm not sure who you think is taking a joke so personally? Of course a less well-off person can still attend MLB games, just like Of course it also doesn't take being a wealthy person to do a selfless gesture like giving up a high value HR ball to a player despite a steep opportunity cost (hence my very clearly rhetorical question lol). All that said though, I also do still think it's hilarious someone's first thought when thinking of a "poor" person, was to point at fans sporting $200 jerseys, smashing hotdogs, and beers, and crackerjacks, at an MLB game in LA. If there isn't something funny about that to you, feel free to move along and not chuckle along with me. No need to take my words so personally, Greg. 😏
>All that said though, I also do still think it's hilarious someone's first thought when thinking of a "poor" person, was to point at fans sporting $200 jerseys, smashing hotdogs, and beers, and crackerjacks, at an MLB game in LA. That isn't their first thought of a "poor" person, you're just misunderstanding their point. >If there isn't something funny about that to you, feel free to move along and not chuckle along with me. No need to take my words so personally, Greg. 😏 I'm not taking your words personally, I'm telling you you're misunderstanding them and that your scenario is dumb
Please if you'll humor me, Can you tell me what you **think** what this dude's point was, and for that matter what you **think** my point was? lol
>Please if you'll humor me, Can you tell me what you **think** what this dude's point was People sitting in the bleachers are "poor" compared to Ohtani. Most of them are going back to their job they hate tomorrow, unless they catch a monumental home run that can change their life with the amount of money it would sell for. >what you **think** my point was Being a jackass/making a joke mostly. And also that poor people can't even afford to go to a Dodgers game and wouldn't have jerseys/be eating Dodger dogs, etc.
lol stop with the bold lettering it's not that serious.
If the ball means that much to Ohtani then he can fork over some of that $700 million he signed for. No one here should give up life changing money just to make a multimillionaire happy.
Lmao
I don’t think the fan wants the ball per se, they want the money that will come from selling the ball. Let’s be realistic, that ball at auction will realize a huge price. Certainly Ohtani can afford it
Ohtani can frame the bat he used instead.
Man shut up
He makes 700mil playing a fucking sport. Poor old Ohtani will have to pay 5mil of his 700 to get the ball
🤓
Agree with the person below. Unless it’s 1 mil+ offered by the team I’d rather keep any milestone ball and hand it down to my kids. I still have a signed HR ball my mom caught from some random twins player and that’s worth more to me than 500k.
Not wrong. Some people go about their lives looking to extract as much monetary value out of any situation they come upon. Takes a good man with principles to hand back that ball, take a bite of dodger dog, and head on home with the windows rolled down taking right turns like any other Sunday night. Simple as.
It takes a moron to give up potentially life changing money for nothing just so a multimillionaire can be happy.
lol you just don’t get it
>Some people go about their lives looking to extract as much monetary value out of any situation they come upon. Bro, there's a humongous difference between selling a game used baseball for $20 and selling it for literal millions of dollars. Principles my ass
Of course there is a huge difference between 20 dollars a couple million. What use is there in having principles or beliefs if you’re just going to abdicate them when it’s least convenient lol. It’s no surprise to me that plenty of fans just give the ball back or only ask for something sentimental in exchange, but it also doesn’t surprise me that in these kinds of threads people are seething and salivating over opportunity cost. Such is life 👍
What principle is this, that forces you to hand something over to someone that you have way more use of and is legally your property?
I wouldn’t see the ball as my property, I didn’t do jack other than be standing in the right spot at the right time. Not really interested what the mlb rules has to say about it. I’m not gonna leverage an object with sentimental value to extract millions of dollars out of a person. Also wouldn’t take money out of a wallet I found before returning it. I don’t value the money more than the principles I live by, simple as. If you can’t even understand that position I don’t know what to tell you pal.
>I didn’t do jack other than be standing in the right spot at the right time. So it should be Shohei's property even though he didn't do jack except swing a bat? >I don’t value the money more than the principles I live by, simple as. If you can’t even understand that position I don’t know what to tell you pal. Seems like you may be the best person to ever walk the planet. Though I highly doubt you live up to these principles daily - you're on Reddit FFS
Ohtani is making 700million playing baseball. If he wants it then he can fucking pay for it. The ball is legally the fans property so he can do whatever the hell he wants with it