It looked like Murphy made a horrible mistake to turn down a sure-fire $500,000 up until the last day of the auction, when the ball rose in value from about $200,000 to its final price. Instead of becoming an item of total disinterest from buyers and fans, the better-than-expected price indicates that someone, anyone, still cares about Barry Bonds' record enough to pay a considerable sum of money to possess its worldly dimension.
Of course, this isn't exactly a crowning auction achievement either: Mark McGwire's single-season ball sold for about $3 million in 1998, back before everyone had more than a slight inkling the records were being achieved with the help of performance-enhancing drugs. And Murphy? After taxes, he gets about $90,000 -- nothing to sniff at, sure, but a paltry sum compared to lucky ballhawks in the past.
Ah, steroids. They make everything so fun, don't they?
Matt Murphy had a chance to sell the ball for $500,000 outright, the real-world equivalent of Ebay's "But It Now" feature. It's looking more and more like Murphy should have taken the bait; with a starting bid of $100,000, and no one driving the price up at all in the first few days, Murphy could be cashing in on considerably less than half a mil. Ouch.
Sure, we all expected the Bonds ball to be held in disregard, but did anyone think it would get the toxic treatment? Plenty of people seem disgusted with Bonds, but plenty of people seem apathetic too. There's no one in the Bay Area interested? No money where the keys to the city are?
Mission Viejo-based SCP Auctions has negotiated exclusive rights to auction off No. 755, the ball that Bonds hit to tie Hank Aaron's home run record, and No. 756, the ball that broke Aaron's record. SCP and Sotheby's, its New York-based partner, will today begin an auction that runs through Sept. 15. The firms expect the price tag for No. 756 to reach $500,000.
What the balls will fetch is up in the air, in large part because of continued but unproven allegations of steroid use by Bonds. Longtime collector, broker and memorabilia show operator Mike Berkus, for example, reported widespread apathy among collectors during the National Sports Collectors Convention that was underway in Cleveland as Bonds closed in on Aaron's record.
Without being utterly serious about something that should be treated lightly, this is yet another instance in which Barry Bonds' swirling cloud of suspicions pollutes an incredible acheivement. We should be gearing ourselves up for an A-Rod-esque bidding war; instead we're lamenting collector apathy, and being apathetic ourselves. Sad, sad.
Earlier today, Matt Watson alerted you to the fact that Matt Murphy, he of No. 756 home run ball fame, was hawking his Jose Reyes jersey he wore that historic night on eBay. (Get your bids in now, kids!) MW also let you know Murphy wasn't quite sure what he was going to do with the ball just yet -- he wasn't supposed to announce his decision to 5 p.m. EST today.
The 21-year-old New York man said Tuesday he had no choice but to sell the ball -- several people told him he would be taxed on the souvenir just for holding on to it.
"It wasn't hard," Murphy said. "It was simple math. I'm upset by the decision I had to make. ... I wanted to keep it. I'm young. I don't have the bank account."
[ ... ]
Sotheby's/SCP Auctions will handle the sale at www.scpauctions.com beginning Aug. 28 and going through Sept. 15. The starting bid has not been determined, and auction officials estimated the ball would bring at least $500,000.
Can't blame Murphy at all. There's certainly no reason to sit on the ball and get taxed for it. Make bills, son. I'm no memorabilia connoisseur, but $500,000 seems a bit steep. We'll see what it really garners soon enough here.
Matt Murphy, the fan who caught Barry Bonds' 756th home run ball, is finally about to cash in on his 15 minutes of fame. He still hasn't officially decided whether he's going to sell the ball yet (riiight, just play along, ok? he's enjoying the suspense), but he has decided to put up some other very important and valuable pieces of memorabilia from that night: his dirty Mets jersey and his baseball cap. From eBay:
This is the real Jersey I wore at the Giants game while catching the famous Barry Bonds career 756 ball...I have not washed the jersey. There is a picture of me holding the Jose Reyes jersey that I wore to the game. There are several ketchup stains on the front as well as back illustrated in the pictures from being on the ground of At&t park figthing for the ball. This is the real Jersey, I will be putting the hat that I wore to the game up for bid also. There are a lot of fakes floating around......i promise you this is authentic. For me to autograph the jersey will be at the buyers request.
When did this happen? I thought people only wanted to buy game-used jerseys from athletes, not fans. I guess it might be a unique consolation prize for someone who can't afford the ball, but would a hard-core Bonds fan really want a Mets jersey hanging on the wall of their den?
Yes, it's true. Giants fans, who have loved Barry Bonds unconditionally for so many years, and who have sunk so much time and money into rooting for him and buying tickets to see him play, were all wondering what they would do if they caught Bonds' record breaking home run. Would they keep it? Give it to the Hall of Fame? Trade it for an autographed jersey? Sell it and put a down payment on a house?
Imagine how Giants fans must have felt when the fan who actually did catch the ball emerged from the crowd wearing ... a Mets jersey and a Mets undershirt.
In the middle of it all was 22-year-old New Yorker Matt Murphy, who emerged from beneath the pile holding the ball Bonds hit for career home run No. 756. His face was bloodied and his clothes stretched and torn from his battle in the bleachers. A team of San Francisco police officers moved in, extracted Murphy from the crowd, and quickly led him through a tunnel and into a secure room.
As he high-fived other fans, Murphy, wearing a New York Mets jersey and cap, slid the ball into the back pocket of his plaid Bermuda shorts.
Reporters screamed out questions, but all he managed to say was, "I'm Matt Murphy from Queens, N.Y." Murphy and a friend were en route to Australia and in San Francisco for a one-day layover, a Giants spokesman said. They purchased tickets just before the game.
Which brings about a very important question: How in the world was this game not sold out just before the game? A Giants home game with Hank Aaron's record on the line? I, for one, am astonished.
Baseball memorabilia experts have pegged the ball's value at $400,000 to $500,000. That's well below the $3 million fetched by the ball Mark McGwire hit to break Roger Maris' single-season home run record in 1998, but still a hefty sum.
And probably enough to pay for a trip to Australia. (And in a good point provided by the first comment, enough to pay for what he may have given a scalper for that ticket.)Sorry, No Photos
I've written a couple of derisive, nose-in-the-air posts about the Sotheby's auction for Barry Bonds' all-time home run record ball, and now it's time to eat crow: the Bonds ball fetched $750,000 at auction, more than anyone's estimates, and more than lucky owner Matt Murphy was offered before the auction. 
OK, so there are still 16 days left in the battle to win Barry Bonds' steroids-tainted record ball from 
And the big question -- both for 
Earlier today, 
Yes, it's true. Giants fans, who have loved 
