Sunday, January 10, 1999
Value of 70th home-run ball going, going . . .
Auction expected to bring $1M-plus
BY FRANK ELTMAN
The Associated Press
NEW YORK — When a slightly smudged Rawlings baseball left Montreal Expos pitcher Carl Pavano's right hand in September, it was worth about nine bucks.
Then it reached St. Louis Cardinals slugger Mark McGwire, who promptly launched the 70th and final home run of his record-setting 1998 season.
Tuesday night, Philip Ozersky — a soft-spoken research scientist who caught Mr. McGwire's missile — could see that ball fetch more than $1 million at auction.
The McGwire ball could be “the Hope Diamond of sports collectibles,” predicts Arlan Ettinger, owner of Guernsey's auction house, which is staging the auction in tandem with the online sales company eBay. If he's right, the ball will dwarf the record for a ball sold at auction: $126,000 for Babe Ruth's first home run at Yankee Stadium.
Mr. Ozersky has announced plans to donate some of the proceeds to the American Cancer Society and the Leukemia Society of America. Other than that, he's keeping quiet.
“It's hard to say,” he said. “I have a tough time spending money I don't have.”
Bidding actually opened last week at eBay.com. Potential buyers who qualify (minimum bid is $100,000) can post their bid, then check to see if competitors topped their bid and, if so, update it at will.
The top three bidders will be notified shortly before Tuesday's live auction at the Theater at Madison Square Garden. Their bids will be used as starting prices and they will be permitted to continue bidding through the Internet.
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