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Auctions of sports memorabilia are not as glamorous as the ball games that have given the items up for auction a tremendous amount of value. But Freddie Freeman’s baseball bid for the Dodgers’ walk-off grand slam in Game 1 of the World Series against the New York Yankees in October created its own drama.
The ball was sold for $1.56 million by SCP Auctions on Saturday night, but a fierce battle between bidders extended bidding two and a half hours beyond the original deadline.
The donation will go to the family of a 10-year-old boy who corralled the ball in the right field seats at Dodger Stadium during wild celebrations after Freeman hit a home run with the bases loaded and the Dodgers scoring a run in the bottom of the 10th inning. will be given. Stay away from defeat.
This moment will forever go down as one of the greatest in Dodgers history, rivaling Kirk Gibson’s eerily similar walk-off home run in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series. This memory will be forever cherished by Zachary Ruderman and his parents, Nico and Anne. That money would be life-changing for the Venice family.
But with five minutes left in the week-long auction and the top bid at $800,000, it looked like the bids would never reach seven figures. However, the $850,000 bid caused a 30-minute overtime, and once again the countdown reached almost zero, leading to a $900,000 bid.
Each extension then expired before the next bid was made, amounting to $1.3 million. Buyer’s premium and fees pushed the total price to $1.56 million.
“It was crazy,” said David Kohler, president of SCP Auctions. “Sometimes that happens. We’re thrilled with this result and honored to work with one of the most important artifacts in World Series history.”
The highest bid for a baseball was $4,392,000, just two months after Shohei Ohtani became the first MLB player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a season, hitting on September 19th at Miami’s Loan Depot Park. The player became set on the ball. The previous record, $3.05 million, was paid in 1999 for Mark McGwire’s 70th home run of the 1998 season.
There is debate over how the proceeds from the sale of Ohtani’s ball will be distributed. Max Matas filed suit in Florida’s Eleventh Circuit Court claiming ownership of the ball against Christian Zasek, fellow Florida resident Kelvin Ramirez, and Goldin Auctions. .
There is no such controversy surrounding Freeman Ball. The direct fallout from Zachary Ruderman is that Freeman has declared his favorite player, scoring in games that his family often attends.
“Everyone was standing up and no one was sitting down,” Zachary told the Times. “I was standing in the bleachers so I could see, and a second or two after the bat broke, I realized it was coming right at us.
“Honestly, it was a gut reaction.”
Everyone seated around him was so ecstatic about the Dodgers’ win that they remained in the stadium while the team celebrated on the field. No one tried to take the ball away from him.
Zachary Ruderman celebrates holding the ball that Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman hit with a walk-off grand slam in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday.
(Nico Ruderman)
“Hundreds of people were massaging me,” Zachary said. “So many people wanted to take pictures with me and the ball. It was overwhelming.”
Early the next morning, Zachary accompanied his mother, Ann, on a business trip. He was wearing a Dodgers cap and T-shirt, and a flight attendant asked him if he had seen the walk-off home run.
“Oh,” Zachary replied, “I understand.”
The flight attendant hopped on the in-flight public address system to announce Zachary’s good fortune to other passengers. He rose from his seat in response to applause.
The most expensive MLB item ever sold at auction was Babe Ruth’s 1932 World Series jersey, which sold for $24.12 million in August 2024. The Yankees’ No. 3 road jersey was worn by Ruth when he hit the legendary “Called Shot” home run at Wrigley. field.
The identity of Freeman Ball’s new owner has not been made public. Zachary Ruderman has had his moment of fame and now fortune, but all his family wants is for the ball to be on display for Dodgers fans to enjoy and remember.
“It’s more attention than my son has ever experienced,” Nico Ruderman said. “People recognize him. I mean, literally everywhere he goes, people stop him and want to take pictures with him. He really loves it. It’s been a fun experience for him.
“It would be great to have this ball on display at Dodger Stadium so fans can see this special piece of history.”
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