Has it come to this? Foul ball from Jeter’s 3,000th hit at-bat being auctioned
Jul 20, 2011, 10:03 AM EDT
Has baseball memorabilia collecting jumped the shark? When they start auctioning off the foul balls that preceded a milestone hitting achievement, I say the answer is most definitely yes. As we know, local Kevin James impersonator Christian Lopez snagged the home run that Jeter hit for No. 3,000 in New York on July 9, returning the ball to the Yankee star and receiving a bunch of team swag in return. So with that item off the market, some insane collectible enthusiasts figured they’d try to sell the next best thing.
MEARS Online Auctions has acquired a foul ball Jeter hit during that same at-bat, and is going to run it up the flagpole to see if anyone will salute it with cash.
Four balls specially marked by Major League Baseball were used during Jeter’s at bat. According to MEARS, the first was hit foul into the backstop and picked up by a Yankees ball boy. The second ball is the one acquired by the father of the consignor, who had his right arm in a sling but managed to deflect the ball off his fingers and pounce on it in the stairway to the right of where he was si
tting.
The ball displays the MLB Authentication “J1″ stamp and a large black mark from Jeter’s bat. MEARS examined the ball under a black light and discovered the covert three-digit number applied to discourage possible counterfeiting during milestone achievements.
Of the two other balls hit into foul territory, another was given to a young girl by a ball boy (although we wonder if that may have resulted in a groan or two from the Yankees and Steiner Sports, who would have liked to have yet another Jeter collectible to market). The whereabouts of the ball hit into the backstop haven’t been revealed as of yet.
We need to find that ball! Search the ball boy’s house! Ransack the place! ‘Where’s that ball?!’ (Slaps ball boy’s mother). Talk, woman!’
Oh, sorry. It’s just that this baseball memorabilia thing is getting freaking ridiculous.
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Foul ball from Jeter’s 3,000th hit at bat will be auctioned [Sports Collectors Daily]
Derek Jeter’s Foul Ball From 3,000th Hit At-Bat Goes To Auction [Fan Phooey]
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- pjmarn6 - Jul 20, 2011 at 2:56 PM
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Can someone please explain to me what makes these multimillion dollar .250 average players worth these salaries? An average school teacher makes $43,000 and these players have not shown any added value from the days they were paid, $40,000-$50,000 per year. This is a false economy. Games used to be free on tv and radio. Players were players and they played harder. Today they get paid, for their hotels, air fare, meals, rides to the parks, and a thousand more perks and we the fans get what more for these hyper inflated salaries?
NOTHING! It is ridiculous $10 hotdogs and the yankers, yes yankers because they yank the money out of your pockets, not mine, for $2000 tickets to one game!
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- meistersol - Jul 22, 2011 at 11:43 AM
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My daughter is the “young girl” given the foul ball hit by Jeter the pitch before he went over for #3000. As a huge Yankees (and Jeter) fan, July 9, 2011 was a magical day for myself and my family. Not only was it the first time we attended a Yankees game (my daughters’ first MLB game), but we ended up witnessing Derek Jeter make baseball history. To top it off, my eight year old walked out of Yankee Stadium with a piece of that history in her hand. In short, this “J2″ ball is priceless, and will retain a place of honor in our family for generations to come. This ball represents one of the best days of our lives, and will stay off of the auction block.
