A fan leapt out of the stands in an effort to catch Aaron Judge's historic home run ball on Tuesday.
But it was to no avail. He got tossed from the stadium while another lucky fan who stayed in his seat walked away with the historic — and valuable — prize.
With one game left in the regular season, Judge hit home run No. 62 on the road in the second leg of a double-header against the Texas Rangers. The solo blast to left field off of Rangers pitcher Jesus Tinoco cemented Judge as the all-time single-season home run king in the AL, as he broke a tie with fellow New York Yankee Roger Maris.
The historic moment produced a very valuable souvenir for the lucky fan who was able to snag it, with experts predicting the ball could fetch upwards of $1 million on the memorabilia market.
This produced high demand in left field at Arlington, Texas, where one fan risked his health for a shot at the ball. As Judge's blast descended, one fan leapt out of his front-row seat, over a railing and into a gap several feet below.
A FAN JUMPED OFF THE RAILINGS TO TRY AND GET THE BALL IF IT FELL ON AARON JUDGE’S 62ND HOME RUN 😂😂😂😂 #YANKEES#AARONJUDGEpic.twitter.com/0fKYuIhVNq
— Marky Mark (@markkberger) October 5, 2022
This appeared to be calculated gamble considering multiple factors. There was no guarantee that the ball would land in the gap (it didn't). If it did land in the gap, there's a decent chance that he was trespassing and wouldn't be allowed to keep the ball even if he did grab it. Then there's his health. That's not a short drop.
The upside, of course, was the chance at snagging the lucrative prize. Was it worth it the risk?
It turns out that he was OK. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports that the fan escaped injury. But he didn't return to his seat as security escorted him out of the stadium. It wasn't initially clear if he's facing any charges.
Guy did not incur injuries, but was escorted out of park for trying to jump fence. https://t.co/3Q7WZQ1n6E
— Evan Grant (@Evan_P_Grant) October 5, 2022
Meanwhile, a guy named Corey Youmans, who was sitting in Section 31, Row 1, Seat 3, snagged the ball. Would he keep it? Sell it? Give it to Judge? He didn't know in the moment.
#Rangers Security whisked away a Dallas man by the name of Corey Youmans who caught Judge’s 62nd home run ball.
#62 pic.twitter.com/lP7jequjIJ
— Joe Trahan (@JoeTrahan) October 5, 2022
"That's a good question," Youmans told reporters. "I haven't thought about it."
Here's one person we're guessing hopes that Youmans keeps the ball — his wife Bri Amaranthus, who's a Sports Illustrated reporter and former contestant on "The Bachelor."
THIS IS MY HUSBAND. https://t.co/GNIuP7phnA
— Bri Amaranthus (@BriAmaranthus) October 5, 2022
She shared a photo of the historic ball on Instagram.
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