Everything has its price
McGwire's 70th HR ball could go for $1 million
Posted: Saturday January 09, 1999 04:21 PM
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Ozersky said he would donate some of the proceeds from McGwire's 70th home run ball to the American Cancer Society and the Leukemia Society of America AP |
NEW YORK (AP) -- When a slightly smudged Rawlings baseball left Montreal Expos pitcher
Carl Pavano's right hand in September, it was worth about $9.
Then it reached the bat of St. Louis slugger Mark McGwire,
who promptly launched the 70th and final home run of his record-setting
1998 season.
The ball landed in Busch Stadium's left field stands. Its price tag is
still going up.
On Tuesday night, Philip Ozersky -- a research scientist who caught
McGwire's historic home run ball -- could see it fetch more than $1 million
at a Madison Square Garden auction.
The McGwire ball is "the Hope Diamond of sports collectibles," said
Arlan Ettinger, owner of Guernsey's auction house. If he's right, the
official National League ball will dwarf the existing record for a ball
sold at auction: $126,000 for the first home run ball hit by Babe Ruth at
Yankee Stadium.
Other balls offered by Guernsey's include the 66th and final home run
by Sammy Sosa
of the Chicago Cubs;
the 755th and last home run by career home run king Hank Aaron, and other
balls from the McGwire-Sosa home run derby last season.
Guernsey's, which is staging the auction in tandem with the online
sales company eBay, also will
make 30-40 other coveted baseball items available.
McGwire's 70th should draw the most bidding because it took 37 years
for someone to break Roger Maris' mark of 61 homers in 1961. Before that,
there was a 34-year gap from when Ruth hit 60 in 1927.
Ozersky said he would donate some of the proceeds to the American
Cancer Society and the Leukemia Society of America. The longtime Cardinals
fan also said he might buy season tickets to see his favorite team, and
might use some of the money to buy tickets for underprivileged children.
Ozersky, who has never met McGwire, doesn't think the slugger will
quibble with his decision to sell.
"I think with the way he's been personified -- that he's most proud of
just being a father and a professional -- I think he'd recognize how I've
handled myself in this situation and I don't think he'd have any ill will,"
Ozersky said.
Calls to McGwire's California publicist were not immediately returned.
Bidding on the McGwire ball and other items actually opened last
Tuesday on the eBay Internet site. Interested buyers were required to
submit financial information to Guernsey's to ensure only qualified bidders
participate.
Those buyers can then post their bid on the Web site, and check
periodically to see if competitors topped their bid. There is no limit to
the amount of times potential buyers can update their bids.
The top three bidders on each item from the week-long eBay auction
will be notified shortly before the live auction begins Tuesday. Their bids
will be used as starting prices and they will be permitted to continue
bidding via the Internet against those actually at the auction.
Michael Barnes, a sports agent representing Ozersky and other owners
of baseballs caught during the McGwire-Sosa home run contest, said the $1
million estimate came after several collectors offered his client at least
that much for McGwire's No. 70.
"I would consider $1 million a low figure for the ball," he said.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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