Just days before his World Series debut, Shohei Ohtani’s historic 50th home run of the season sold at auction for a whopping $2.3 million.
Japan’s most famous athlete became the first player in baseball history to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a season, reaching the mark on September 19 when the Los Angeles Dodgers star hit his second of three home runs against the Marlins.
With 27 bids registered, Goldin.co closed the online auction Tuesday night without identifying the buyer.
The auction has been somewhat overshadowed by the legal situation surrounding the ball. Christian Zacek left Miami’s LoanDepot Park with the ball after gaining possession in the left field stands. Max Matus and Joseph Davidov claim in separate lawsuits that they were the first to grab the ball.
Zacek was identified as Chris Belanski in the initial lawsuits. Matus’ updated lawsuit, obtained by The Associated Press on Friday, changes the defendant’s name to Zacek and removes Goldin Auctions as a defendant.
Just days before his World Series debut, Shohei Ohtani’s historic 50th home run of the season sold at auction for a whopping $2.3 million.
Ohtani became the first player in baseball history to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a season on September 19 when he hit his second of three home runs against the Marlins.
Images have emerged of desperate baseball fans fighting for Shohei Ohtani’s home run.
“Goldin’s contract to sell the ball is with Christian Zacek,” Matus’ attorney, John Uustal, said in a statement. “Apparently it is the same person in the stadium, who may have been listed as Belanski in the stadium.
“It has been difficult to identify and locate him at least since a few days after the game. But anyway, the court now has control over the auction proceeds, and our lawsuit is against Zacek, who signed the contract with Goldin.
All parties involved in the litigation have agreed that the auction should continue.
“This agreement provides certainty to potential buyers that the historic 50/50 baseball will be sold free of any legal claims on the ball against the future buyer,” Zacek’s attorneys said in a statement. “We believe this agreement reflects all parties’ recognition of this monumental achievement and will allow the full value of this historic 50/50 baseball to be fully recognized at auction.”
Matus’ lawsuit claims the Florida resident, who was celebrating his 18th birthday, took possession of the Ohtani ball before Zacek took it from him. Davidov claims in his lawsuit that he was able to “firmly and completely grasp the ball with his left hand while on the ground, successfully obtaining 50/50 possession of the ball.”
Davidov is seeking more than $50,000 in damages.
