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After completing one of the greatest seasons and winning the AL MVP, Judge agreed to a nine-year, $360 million contract with the Yankees. Bidding on the ball opened on Nov. 29 and ended Saturday. Evan Drellich is a senior writer who covers the business of baseball for The Athletic.
Throughout the season, MLB polled fans on the sport’s most exciting player to watch. Shohei Ohtani was the dominant selection early in the season, before Judge vaulted to the top in the second half. According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the attorney for the Texas man who caught the ball told the Worldwide Leader he rejected a $3 million offer before going to auction. At the time, he said he wasn't sure what he wanted to do with the ball.
Where the Yankees fit in a reshaped AL after Carlos Rodon addition
On Sunday, Judge set the American League single-season record for the most home runs hit by a right-handed hitter with his 59th dinger of the year. The price is the second highest paid for a baseball auction, according to Goldin Executive Chairman and Founder Ken Goldin. He identified the buyer as a prominent Midwestern businessman and collector. That Judge wasn’t higher than fourth this season at MLB’s shop might be explained by his walk year. MLB has found that some fans are reticent to buy player gear if there is a chance the player is on his way out. At MLB’s online store , Judge finished fourth in player jersey sales, and his sales grew 88 percent from last year, the league said.
“It’s not a number that’s easy to determine out of the overall pot of money,” said Howard Levinson, YES Network’s senior vice president of ad sales. Action Network’s Darren Rovell spoke with Youmans, who said he wasn’t comfortable with a private sale — There were offers up to $3 million before he let Goldin handle the auctioning. The enthusiasm for Judge, combined with statements like that, led to sky-high expectations from the auction house. Judge had the top-selling MLB jersey in his first three seasons and has never been out of the top seven.
Seller information
Fanatics, the dominant sports apparel seller, said that Judge was its best-selling MLB player in total merchandise sales this season. Judge was also Fanatics’ top finisher in total memorabilia sales in baseball, and second overall across all sports behind only Tom Brady. The man who caught Aaron Judge's record-breaking 62nd home run ball was always going to make a pretty penny once he sold his prize.
"Ryan Howard did some special things in the game and we've already seen what Gary Sanchez can do. It's just the beginning for him. I'm going to catch him. I know I'm trailing him right now but I'm going to try to catch him."
Many consider Judge to now be the true all-time record holder
Judge reached the century milestone with a two-run, first-inning blast off Seattle starter Yusei Kikuchi, giving his club a quick lead with a line drive that dented the center-field batter's eye at T-Mobile Park. Qualifying purchases could enjoy No Interest if paid in full in 6 months on purchases of $99 or more. The Yanks were down 8-4 when Judge hit the blast, but it kickstarted a huge comeback for the Yanks who won on a walk-off Giancarlo Stanton grand slam to beat the Pirates, 9-8. Judge said in a conference call before the auction that he was not going to bid on the ball.
Could the Yankees have tried some combination of, say, Carlos Correa and Brandon Nimmo to replace Judge? But it would have cost more in the aggregate, and the Yankees knew Judge worked with their team and their fan base. Hal Steinbrenner decided he needed Judge for his roster, his television network, his attendance, his marketing and — perhaps most vital of all — for the owner’s reputation against the mounting criticism and boos. This began with the Yankees not believing their best player would leave, that he needed them more than they needed him. Their late offers followed a trajectory with which Judge had become familiar — All Rise. The home run snapped a five-game homerless drought for Judge.
Baseball AlmanacPer ESPN, the most expensive baseball ever sold at auction was Mark McGwire’s 70th home run in 1998, which went for $3.05 million. Aaron Judge’s 62-homer season for the Yankees helped him secure the largest contract awarded to a player in this off-season, but the baseball from that last home run was somewhat of a disappointment at auction. Several National League players have surpassed that number of home runs in a season, but with their links to performance-enhancing drugs, many consider Judge is now the true record holder.
Yankees great Roger Maris held the previous AL record, with 61 home runs. Barry Bonds holds the single-season MLB record, with 73 home runs. Cory Youmans, the Rangers fan who caught the historic baseball at Globe Life Field in October, was seated in left field when Judge homered off a slider from Jesus Tinoco in the first inning. Youmans reportedly declined a $3 million offer after catching the ball before placing it for auction. Aaron Judge’s record-setting 62nd home run ball sold for $1.5 million, according to Goldin Auctions. The auction closed on Saturday night for a winning bid of $1.25 million plus a $250,000 buyer’s premium.
• Judge has homered off 56 different pitchers this season, which is an AL record. He broke Ken Griffey Jr.'s previous mark of 52 in 1998. The all-time record is the 65 different pitchers McGwire homered against in that same iconic '98 season.
The Yankees then came pouring out of the dugout, jumping in jubilation after Judge hit his 62nd home run of the season, breaking Roger Maris’ 61-year-old franchise and American League record. Bonds, Sosa, and Mark McGwire have since surpassed Maris, but their links to performance-enhancing drugs have tarnished their legacies to many baseball fans who think Judge’s 62nd home run will be the true all-time single season record. With the home run, Judge set the AL record for home runs in a season, passing Roger Maris. New York Yankees' Aaron Judge hits a solo home run, his 62nd of the season, during the first inning in the second baseball game of a doubleheader against the Texas Rangers in Arlington, Texas, Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2022.
• Judge's 61st home run, to tie Maris, was hit 117.4 mph -- his hardest homer of the season. It's the hardest home run Judge has hit since Sept. 30, 2017, the 52nd and final homer of his AL Rookie of the Year campaign. Thirty-six of Judge's home runs have been "no-doubt" home runs -- that means they would be gone at all 30 MLB ballparks. The hitter with the next-most no-doubter home runs this year is Austin Riley, with 21. • Judge's 62 homers have totaled a distance of 25,520 feet -- nearly five miles.
At a high level, what stands out about Judge is that the marketing of baseball just doesn’t usually revolve around a single player. From a secondary angle, regional sports networks can be in an annoying position when the spotlight shines on their team. National partners — like ESPN — want more Yankees content, both during the 2022 season and going forward.
He’ll get paid
Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees bats and hits a home run against the Minnesota Twins on September 2, 2022, at Yankee Stadium in New York, New York. Ticket prices for the chance to watch and/or catch 61 and 62 have also skyrocketed, so Judge can stay as humble as he wants, but 62 is historic no matter what. Judge is also the third Yankee to hit 60 in a season, joining Roger Maris and Babe Ruth . He's the first person to reach the mark since both Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa did so in 2001.
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