What will happen to Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers? Interesting news are pouring in every day for his 50th home run ball.
In his 2024 Major League showdown with the Miami Marlins at Rondipo Park in Miami, Florida on the 20th of last month, Ohtani went 6 for 6 (three home runs) with 10 RBIs, 4 runs and 2 steals.
It was the moment when the world’s first baseball history was born that no one else had ever accomplished. Ohtani hit a double at his first at-bat in the top of the first inning, stole the third base, and secured his 50th stolen base of the season. He then stole once again after getting a hit with runners on the first and second bases with one out in the top of the second inning, and secured his 51st stolen base, and exploded a timely hit to sweep two runners at his third at-bat. His performance thus far, however, was nothing.
With one out and runners on the second base in the sixth inning, Ohtani threw out the bat on the second slider of George Soriano, a new pitcher of Mai Mamie, and the ball that stretched at the speed of 111.2 miles (179 kilometers) crossed the right fence before returning. With his 49th homer of this season, Ohtani will have only one homerun and 50 stolen bases, an unprecedented record. Ohtani has created a new history in the seventh inning that no one else has ever achieved.
With his team leading 12-3 at the top of the seventh inning with two outs and runners on the third base, he swung Mike Bowman’s knuckle curve into the strike zone on the fourth pitch of the Miami Marlins as if he was waiting. Ohtani’s hit again this time was a homerun as soon as he left the bat. As a result, the 109.7 mile-long ball flew 391 feet (119.1 meters) to lead to a two-run homerun to the left.
There was one more reason why the game remained the best ever. Ohtani hit a homerun in three consecutive at-bats against fielder Vidal Bruhan in the top of the ninth inning, and made 51 homers and 51 steals. This also led to numerous records. Ohtani was the first player in the Major League to have three homers and two steals in a game. He also beat Hideki Matsui of “Godzilla” to break the Dodgers record for the most home runs ever.
With Ohtani making a new history, all eyes are now on his 50th home run ball. Chris Bellansky wearing a black T-shirt won the Ohtani home run ball. According to multiple U.S. and Japanese media, Bellansky escaped the ballpark under the protection of team security guards after winning the scramble, and the Dodgers negotiated with him. He wanted to recover Ohtani’s historic home run ball somehow. 안전놀이터
According to Andy Slater of FOX Sports 640 South Florida, multiple Dodgers officials negotiated with the fan in order to collect the ball. Multiple Dodgers officials offered $300,000 (about 400 million won) to the man. However, the fan did not respond to the Dodgers’ offer and posted his 50th home run ball on an auction site called “Goldin.” The auction price started at $500,000 (about 660 million won), which was $200,000 higher than the Dodgers’ offer, and if the team made a bid of $4.5 million (about 6 billion won), the company decided to sell it immediately without further auction.
Problems also arose in the process. An 18-year-old boy named Max Matus claimed ownership of Ohtani’s 50-homer ball and filed a lawsuit with a Florida court to suspend the auction. On the 1st, Joseph Davidoff, a 32-year-old man, also filed a lawsuit. Davidoff is currently seeking $50,000 (about 66 million won) in damages along with an auction injunction. He grabbed the ball with his left hand and was attacked by someone. He claims that without the violent act, he would have become the hero of the 50-homer ball.
The auction deadline for the Ohtani Home Run Ball is scheduled to close on Monday. With more than 20 days to go, the price of the home run ball soared to 1.2 million dollars (about 1.6 billion won). It is four times higher than the original offer of 300,000 dollars by the Dodgers. However, the price of the home run ball is expected to soar even more as time passes.
Yusuke Tanaka, chairman of the Jade Group, which runs a site called “Rocondo” in Japan that sells shoes and other clothing, posted a video on his SNS on the 29th of last month in which he bid $1.05 million (about 1.4 billion won) for Ohtani’s 50th home run ball auction. Tanaka intends to return it to Ohtani after winning his 50th home run ball. Interesting situations are being made every day over Ohtani’s 50th home run ball.
