Back in April, Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Shohei Ohtani hit his 176th career home run, which had some historical significance. With the home run, Ohtani passed former New York Yankees star Hideki Matsui for the most all-time by a Japanese-born MLB player.
Now, the fan that caught the historic home run ball is putting it on the auction block. The fan, who has been identified as Jason Patino, told TMZ Sports he initially planned to keep the ball, but changed his mind when he realized how much it could fetch in the marketplace.
The Ohtani ball is currently being listed at Heritage Auctions, and the starting bid is $50,000. Bidding will open on Aug. 23.
“I’m relieved and happy,” Ohtani said at the time of the historic home run. “I took a while to get this point since my last homer, so just honestly, happy, relieved.”
It’s possible Ohtani’s historic home run ball could fetch an estimated $200,000 on the auction block.
After all, the Dodgers designated hitter is one of the most alluring players the baseball world has to offer. In 115 games this season, Ohtani has posted a .298 batting average, while blasting 35 home runs and knocking in 83 runs.
