11/05/24
August 08, 2007
Mets Fan Emerges with Bonds Home Run Ball: "They were pushing grandmothers to the floor," said Susan Kitchens, sitting near the place Barry Bonds' historic home run landed Tuesday night and ignited a mad scramble of pushing, shoving and other bad sportsmanship. When it was over, Matt Murphy, a 26-year-old visiting Mets fan who bought his ticket that day, walked away with a ball worth an estimated half-million.
First off, they're lucky someone doesn't get killed in these situations. You're not talking about a mere scrum for a ball, you're talking about something that could net the owner millions of dollars. I can honestly see the Bonds ball being worth much more than people anticipate, mainly because of all the controversy surrounding it. Sure it would have been nice if the person who hit 756 was someone with a squeaky-clean image, whom everyone loves and is a huge fan of, but honestly and unfortunately, in this day and age, controversy is what sells and what people are drawn to. Also, I can't imagine sitting at that game and, all of a sudden, having that ball come towards me. I'd be shitting my pants! I get a major adrenaline-rush when a ball comes flying at me in batting practice at major league games. This must have been absolutely unreal.
posted by dyams at 09:40 AM on August 08, 2007
"If I would have had a glove on tonight, I would have caught it," Herman said. Before the game, a friend of Herman had offered him a glove, but he turned it down. Yeah, when million dollar baseballs might be whizzing into the area of your seats, think about a glove. Idiot.
posted by The Crafty Sousepaw at 09:49 AM on August 08, 2007
Matt "Guitar" Murphy?
posted by mr_crash_davis at 10:04 AM on August 08, 2007
First off, they're lucky someone doesn't get killed in these situations. Agreed. Imagine someone dropping a suitcase with $1 million into a crowd of several hundred and imagine the outcome. I'm actually surprised it's not worse. Seriously, how long would you fight for $500k? If I was in the vicinity of that ball when it landed, I think I'd still be out there trying to get a piece of that ball, and I'm not really a bad person :-)
posted by bdaddy at 10:45 AM on August 08, 2007
I had a home run hit directly at me once at Arlington Stadium, when the Texas Rangers had sold out a Sunday game during a record win streak that eventually reached 14 games. You could see me that night on SportsCenter, freezing in panic as the guy next to me drops his toddler, elbows me aside and makes a lunge for the ball. My friends wore out the Rewind button on the VCR.
posted by rcade at 11:05 AM on August 08, 2007
I can honestly see the Bonds ball being worth much more than people anticipate, mainly because of all the controversy surrounding it. I disagree. I think this ball tops out at $500K and more likely sells in the $200K-$300K range. The problem here, aside from Bonds' image issues, is that every ball Barry whacks out of the park from here on out is the new record ball. The big money will be the last one.
posted by wfrazerjr at 12:02 PM on August 08, 2007
I just think this ball symbolizes the steroid scandal in baseball, which has the propensity of being the biggest issue baseball has had to deal with in decades. All the talk about records and potential *asterisks*, along with the ongoing investigations and what they could potentially turn up, this one baseball could represent the crossroads of an entire sport. I know that sounds a bit dramatic, but I think the interest exists to jack up the value of this ball. Whether it's cheering or booing, like or dislike, agree or disagree, Barry Bonds and this home run chase has stirred up amazing emotions in people.
posted by dyams at 12:11 PM on August 08, 2007
And then the ball struck the ground and a guy in a New York Mets jersey plopped down on it and wouldn't budge, while one fan after another tried to pull the ball away from him. I wonder if he's had football training about recovering fumbles. I know that I'd have shoved it down my pants and gone into the fetal position. At least there isn't any controversy on who ended up catching the ball. I'm glad that some 14 year old kid didn't stick his glove up in the air, catch it, and then have it ripped out by some burly guy next to him. "If I would have had a glove on tonight, I would have caught it," Herman said. I bring a glove with me to every single baseball game I go to at the Exhibition Place/SkyDome/Rogers Centre, which would be about 50 by now. Except one, where my friend surprised me with a free ticket while we were downtown electronics shopping. Guess which game is the only one where I've had a chance to make a play on a foul ball? Yup. It was one of those tailing foul balls that barely goes 40 feet in the air, but is moving like a rocket. My friend and his wife bailed out of the way, but I put my hand out and caught the ball...until the momentum of the hit drove my hand backwards into the empty seat beside me. The ball popped out of my hand and richocheted 2 rows back, where someone else caught it. All I got was a grossly swollen hand for the rest of the day.
posted by grum@work at 12:27 PM on August 08, 2007
Catch it like an egg, people. I was at an A's-Gaints game a month or so ago and Bonds hit a foul ball that landed five feet away in the row behind me. The guys tried to catch it with their arms extended, so it bounced off their hands and floated gently over my head and landed in the empty seat in front of me. I could've gotten it easily except I had a beer and a bratwurst so my hands were full, and there wasn't room to set anything down. The woman sitting next to me got it.
posted by kirkaracha at 01:05 PM on August 08, 2007
Catch it like an egg, people. yeah, it still doesn't help much. i caught a home run ball during BP a couple years ago (Sosa hit it). i did the soft hands thing right over the railing in the bleachers. hurt like bitch for the rest of the day. of course it's better than taking one off the head like i did the following year, but at least i got a good story out of that one. if i'm lucky enough to get my seats for the HR derby next year i'm not sure if i'll bring a glove or not. i'm so damn short i don't think it will help much.
posted by goddam at 01:33 PM on August 08, 2007
posted by jasonspaceman at 02:16 PM on August 08, 2007
HAHAH! A Mets fan caught it. Excellent!
posted by Drood at 03:17 PM on August 08, 2007
I don't get it. Why is it funny that a Mets fan caught it?
posted by The Crafty Sousepaw at 04:22 PM on August 08, 2007
It's just like being there! (lower the volume, and watch for the barrage of flashes and then #756 coming RIGHT at you...the last 1:30 of the video is just noise and insanity)
posted by grum@work at 05:19 PM on August 08, 2007
Cool video. TELL ME that wasn't EXCITING!
posted by dyams at 05:42 PM on August 08, 2007
The clowns that piled on should be mocked harshly. Especially the one in the orange 22 jersey that you could see from the field angle. We should make fun of him until he cries.
posted by SummersEve at 06:22 PM on August 08, 2007
I don't get it. Why is it funny that a Mets fan caught it? Well, duh, because Barry Bonds used to play in Pittsburgh, and now plays in San Francisco...do you need it spelled out? Dang! Actually, I have no idea why that's supposed to be funny, but when we're all ridiculing somebody, I pretty much just go with the crowd.
posted by The_Black_Hand at 08:23 PM on August 08, 2007
that ball is too close for that guy to still be filming. Again, that's a $500,000 bill (if there was one). Drop that damn camera and get into the fray!
posted by bdaddy at 09:52 PM on August 08, 2007
"I don't want the ball," Bonds said. "I never ever believed a home run ball belonged to a player. If he caught it, it's his."