September 28,
2004: Home Run Ball Solution
By Ahchie
Barry
Bonds reached another milestone when he recently hit the 700th home run of
his career. Next season he should reach another when he passes Babe Ruth and
some time after that when he passes Hank Aaron. While the history being made
is exciting to witness, the fight for possession of the balls hit by Bonds
has become an ugly scab that Major League Baseball needs to address.
the background | the solution | the diesel's take
The Background
Starting with Mark McGwire, collectors have become willing to shell out massive
amounts of cash to buy record setting balls. McGwire’s 70th home run
of the 1998 season sold for $3.2 million. The craze has continued with Barry
Bonds. While the 73rd home run ball that set the single season mark in 2001
did not bring in nearly as much as McGwire's ball, the values are certain
to skyrocket as Bonds passes Ruth and Aaron.
Two
fans both claimed to have the legal right to that 73rd home run hit by Bonds
and ended up going to court to decide who should get it. The judge decided
that both fans had a right to the ball and should therefore sell it and split
the proceeds. The end result was that neither fan ended up with very much
because they had to use the money from the sale of the ball to cover their
legal costs. The only people that could possibly have been happy with the
outcome would be the lawyers, since they ended up with the money that came
from the ball and they weren't even at the ballpark.
The BMTG has long recognized the concept of just enjoying the game and not getting caught up in artificially inflating the value of something as simple as a ball. While enjoying a luxury suite with George Seifert at the Giants’ former home, 3 Com Stick, the BMTG Senior Council watched a Barry Bonds foul ball roll by on the ledge in front of the suite. Realizing that it was just a ball, the BMTG felt it more important to let the ball go so a young fan in the next suite could get the ball and have a memory to last a lifetime.
Contrast
that scene with the one played out when Bonds hit home run number 700. In
the mass of ravenous fans an 11 year-old was trampled while adults forgot
what being at a baseball game was all about. The boy’s father said,
“What happened was sick. My son disappeared under five grown men. They
just jumped on him, literally. Five grown men. His heart’s broken. It’s
sick. It made me so sick to see it, I almost threw up.”
The fans’ reaction is understandable when it is well known that the 700th home run ball would certainly be worth lots of coin - it is like a million dollar lottery ticket was tossed into the air and up for grabs. These are the times when people get ugly and humanity is abandoned.
Now there is another lawsuit claiming the ball was stolen during the melee. The lawsuit claims, “Immediately after the 700 home run ball fell to the area of plaintiff’s feet, plaintiff established possession, dominion and control over the ball by sitting on it and securing it with his right leg.” If a judge actually determines that the lawsuit has merit, then the situation will only get worse as fans cook up scenarios to show they deserve consideration as well.
The Solution
The
solution to who has possession of historic home run balls, while drastic,
is really very simple. Send the ball to the Hall of Fame and give the fans
something else in return. In the case of Barry Bonds, everyone sitting in
the outfield home run sections must sign a contract that states that any ball
hit by Bonds must be surrendered so it can go directly to Cooperstown. In
return, every fan with a ticket in the section Bonds hit it to will be given
a ball signed by Bonds commemorating the occasion. Only fans with tickets
to the outfield sections, and who have agreed to the conditions, would be
allowed admittance to those sections. Special provisions would have to be
made for areas outside ballparks, such as McCovey Cove in San Francisco. Boaters
would have to enter through a specified area and agree to the same conditions.
Any ball hit into the water would go to the Hall of Fame, while all the boaters
in the water would get the Bonds commemorative ball.
Such drastic measures are necessary because people have forgotten that what they are fighting over is just a ball. Because these scrums for possession of the ball degenerate into something like a scene of children fighting over the right colored crayon, the extreme value of the ball needs to be removed from the equation. If everyone sitting there knew that the specially marked ball would be going to the Hall of Fame and that everyone in that section would get the same thing, regardless of who caught the ball, then order could be restored and silly lawsuits arguing over possession of a baseball could end. Then we could go back to just enjoying the game for what it is – a game.
If
you're comparing postcard backdrops between the cities of San Francisco and
St Louis the choice is obvious. San Francisco is by far one of the most beautiful
cities in the world and St Louis has been milking the Arch for all it's worth
for way too long.
If you're comparing the people of each city, again the choice is obvious. The self-professed peace loving bohemians of the Bay show their hatred for one another almost as often as they brutalize any Republican president of recent memory. In St Louis, everyone is friendly and cooperative, which contradicts the liberals' accusations that Republicans are full of anger and dishonesty. Comparing homerun feats of recent years also illustrates the liberals frequent posturing only to do the exact opposite, in this case civility with each other.
Mark
McGwire had just belted two homeruns the day before the final game of the
1998 season, so his total now stood at 68, and he was playing a day game against
the Expos at Busch Stadium in St Louis. Sammy Sosa, the mislabeled ambassador
of baseball good will, was at 66 homeruns and it was unlikely that he would
be able to catch McGwire with the season ending to take the homerun title,
and subsequently the single season homerun record. As if on queue, McGwire
slammed homerun number 69 over the leftfield fence in the 2nd inning. Men
cheered, children danced, and women wept. Everyone who was there that day
erupted with joy at bearing witness to one of the single greatest achievements
in sports history. As McGwire circled the bases, Expos infielders acknowledged
his achievement with knowing nods. The man who caught the ball in the stands
wasn't tackled or beaten, nor did he leave a wake of destruction and bloodied
children in his path. The guy who was at the right place at the right time
admitted to closing his eyes and sticking out his glove. It worked. The man
was taken to meet with Joe Buck in the announcers' booth and after a brief
on-air conversation, he went out to enjoy the remainder of the game.
Since
all great baseball milestones end in multiples of five (i.e. 3,000 hits, 300
wins, 755 homeruns) it was fitting that McGwire would hit his 4th homerun
in two games and his 70th of the season before it was over. The barrel chested,
pock-faced behemoth was riding destiny as much as he was his personal talent
and everyone in the stadium stood as he approached the plate for his last
at bat of the season in the 7th inning. McGwire took liberties with Carl Pavano,
traded to the Expos for Pedro, and launched his 70th and final homerun of
the season near the same location as the previous homerun. As with homerun
number 69, the man who caught the ball was not mangled beyond recognition
and he did not emerge from a two-story pile of bodies. More telling, and similar
to the 69th homerun, fans who were moments ago scrambling for the ball now
stood next to the victor and congratulated him as McGwire circled the bases
to history. The skirmish to the ball was well fought, but it also had unwritten
rules of conduct that were observed and respected by all.
Then
there's San Francisco. Liberals profess to be above being motivated by financial
gain and their simple lifestyles and ragged clothing appear to confirm that
fact. However, the city that has shown great compassion to wife beaters by
giving them free tickets to baseball games, while life-long wife loving men
are forced to pay full price, has little tolerance for fair play. It has been
interesting to see how the liberal fans have reacted to the barrage of historic
homeruns that Barry Bonds has delivered in recent years, including this season's
660, 661, 699, and 700. In each of these cases the liberals have beaten each
other, trampled children, and yelled obscenities at one another for a baseball.
If the fans of St Louis were so gracious towards the guy with they ball, it
would have been safe to assume that the peaceniks of San Francisco would have
gone a step further and erected a statue with his likeness in the very seat
that it landed. To the contrary, as liberals do when they lose (e.g., 2000
Presidential election), lawsuits claiming ownership have been filed in each
historic homerun hit in San Francisco. The liberals, touting that they are
above lowering themselves in any way for financial rewards are now consumed
by it.
One
BMTG suggestion, for when Bonds hits homerun #715, is to throw a dozen balls
into the air where the ball is landing. The balls should have "Babe Ruth
Sucks" written on them and useoap.com inscribed just below that. Aside
from that suggestion, I'm absent of a perfect solution that would eliminate
the homerun scramble and the now obligatory lawsuit that follows. I do know
that San Franciscans continue to embarrass themselves and their city every
time Bonds goes deep. I hope, for the city's sake, that all future historic
homeruns are hit on the road. I think St Louis would be a good choice. While
the ball may still end up in the hands of the highest bidder, at least the
ball won't land into a sea of hypocrites.
Note: When The Diesel hit his 100th homerun in season #3 to establish the all-time homerun mark in Wiffle ball. The ball was simply returned to the bucket with the other balls and play continued. A ball, chosen at random, will be placed in the BMTG Hall of Fame and identified as the 100th homerun.
