MLB artifact hunters will still have a chance to bid Shohei Ohtanithe NFL’s historic 50th home run on Friday… despite a new lawsuit reportedly trying to stop the process.
According to Darren Rovell of CLLCTthe lawsuit was filed Wednesday night in Florida — just hours after Ken Goldin revealed your auction house will put the ball up for sale later this week with a starting bid of $500,000.
SHOHEI OHTANI DID IT
50 HOME RUNS | 50 STOLEN BASES
HISTORY photo.twitter.com/GRVJUCbpja
— MLB (@MLB) September 19, 2024
@MLB
Rovell reported that the perpetrator is an 18-year-old named Max Matus …who is convinced he is the rightful owner of the baseball. Matus claims in his lawsuit, according to Rovell, that he had full control of the ball before Chris Belanski unfairly stole it from him during a scrum.
Rovell said Matus is suing Belanski and Goldin — seeking, among other things, to stop the imminent sale of the souvenir.
In the best video of the fight for Ohtani’s 50th home run, it appears that the roughly 30-year age difference won out.
(Credit: Justin Walka) photo.twitter.com/mFl0GuXh08
— cllct (@cllctMedia) September 20, 2024
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But, Goldin said in a message to TMZ Sports On Thursday there are no plans to pause things… and bidding will continue on Friday at 9am PT.
“After reviewing the allegations and footage included in the lawsuit,” Goldin said, “and the publicly available video of the game, Goldin plans to commence the Ohtani 50/50 auction as planned.”
“We note that while Goldin has also been named as a party in the case,” he continued, “there are no allegations of wrongdoing by the company.”
“Otherwise, we will not comment on pending litigation.”
Ohtani hit the ball over the fence at LoanDepot Park during the seventh inning of the Dodgers’ contest with the Marlins on September 19 — becoming the first player in MLB history to record a season with 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases.
Although bidding for the baseball starts at half a million… Goldin also set an immediate purchase price of $4.5 million.